A New Harmony
by christiep
Summary: Edward is shipped to Forks after his parent's tragic death to live with his uncle Charlie. While trying to adjust to Forks, he meets Bella Cullen. Will our beloved characters still have their love story if roles are reversed? B/E
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi all- this is an AU where Edward is the human, Bella the vamp. I know its been done, and some of them are really good, but I wanted to make my own attempt, trying to pay special attention to keeping Bella's and Edward's characters as true as possible, making only minor adjustments for their natures. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I definitely don't own Twilight- I wish I was cool enough for that- only Stephenie is that ballin'.  
**

1. Forks

The trees blurred together along the side of the road, still appearing nearly black due to the lack of light at the early hour. Not that I was really looking out the window of the yellow taxi cab- I was too busy trying to keep my mind thought free so I could stay numb. Unfortunately, I couldn't help but think about why I was in this cab in the first place. Under normal circumstances, there would be no way I would be leaving Chicago. Especially not for Forks, Washington, the tiny little one-horse town all the way across the country from the only home I'd ever known. As if its size weren't bad enough, it _rained_ all of the time there- and, really, what kind of town is named after a kitchen utensil?

If I was honest with myself, deep down I knew it was definitely for the best, despite how my very inner being revolted at the idea. It was impossible for me to stay in Chicago- there would be too many painful memories of what my life was before- before the accident. I sighed as I continued to stare at the glass without really seeing past it, feeling reality worm its way into my consciousness, past the superficial complaints. I leaned my forehead against the cool glass, trying to keep the images of that night in the dark recesses of my mind. Unfortunately, it was too late.

********

It had all started earlier that evening when my mom, Elisabeth Masen, had convinced my Dad, Edward Masen Sr.,that it would be a good idea for the three of us to go out to dinner that evening. She had offered the excuse that she didn't particularly feel like cooking, but I could tell that she was only attempting to divert any argument between my father and I that evening. We had been getting into it quite a bit lately, and she thought that getting us in public would force us to be civil. Ever since I had brought up the idea joining the marines in about a year and a half instead of attending college, it had been the source of many heated debates, nearly every night. I felt the need to fight for my country and pay my dues, though, truthfully, dreams of glory and honor also influenced my decision. My Dad had not understood the urgency I felt, and was insisting that I consider waiting until after college- being a self-made man and a lawyer, education was his religion. My mother had wanted me to wait until after I finished my education as well, but only because her great love for me wouldn't allow her to bear the thought of her son being in danger, and she hoped that with time I would change my mind. However, being the kind and non-confrontational being she was, she had only voiced her opinions once or twice before, and this evening, she was trying to prevent the possibility altogether.

The restaurant she picked was both my father's and my own favorite. She knew that neither of us would fight there- at least not much. Of course, as mothers usually are, she was right. Most of the evening it felt like the old days, and I remembered how much I actually liked my father, beyond the nearly mandatory love that bonds parent and child. My father was sincerely one of my favorite people in the world, and by the time dinner was over I had decided to take it easy on him and consider his points the next time the subject of college vs. the marines came up. After all, I saw how much it made my mother happy for us to get along again. She was smiling angelically, her arm around my father's waist, his around her shoulders, as we walked across the parking lot. I realized I was a little ashamed for what I had been doing to her over the last few weeks- she was so incredibly loving, putting her family in front of everything else in her life. Though I still knew what I wanted, I could make life easier for us all, and stop losing my temper and try to appear less headstrong.

We all climbed into the black Lexus the firm had given my father when he made partner a couple of years before, and as we pulled out of the lot, the mood of dinner continued with our conversation. We were all laughing at some joke Dad had just told when it all happened. We were rounding a large curve just a few miles from our house out in the suburbs when a huge Ford truck came barreling towards us. It was the kind that no one who doesn't run a farm needs and certainly didn't belong outside of Chicago- it looked large enough to pull a house. Before I could register more than its size and extremely bright lights, it swerved into our lane, coming too fast to avoid. I heard my Dad curse loudly, jerking the wheel vainly, as my mother simultaneously shrieked in terror. A moment later, I heard and felt the impact of metal on metal. Then all the noises rushed together in a ghastly symphony. Glass flew with a shatter, tires squealed on the asphalt, brakes locked, and various sickening crunches came from the hood of our car as it interlocked with the truck, trapped just under its chrome grill. The two vehicles skidded as one entity off the road. Then, the truck stopped, having transferred all its force to our Lexus, and the noises quieted.

But the violent movements of the car didn't. As the car went into the ditch, the angle caused it to disengage from the truck, then fly into the air as it flipped.

And flipped.

And flipped.

All the while I was being wildly jostled, hitting my head with each turn, hearing only the creak of frame of the car, along with some further crunching, coming from the top of the car each time it made impact with the ground. Suddenly, the world came to a quiet stillness as the car landed, rocked one last time, then slammed back down with a final _crash. _With nothing else comparable to the last minute or so to process, my senses, so keenly heightened from the adrenaline, shut down, leaving me in the black.

********

I struggled to pull myself back to reality as the cab neared the airport- these were exactly the thoughts I was trying to avoid. Little else mattered from that night- I had ended up in the hospital, where the doctor had found shockingly few injuries. I had a few bruises, and some cuts that resulted in numerous stitches. I had stayed overnight for observation due to the concussion I had acquired as well.

But my parents had been gone- _dead_. Mom had been ejected from the car on impact- she was dead before she really knew what had happened. At least that's what the doctors said- but I knew she hadn't been oblivious- it had been in her scream and face when the truck had come at us. Maybe she didn't physically feel anything, but I knew that mental agony was far worse- I should know, I dealt with it every day now. If I hadn't been constantly instigating disagreements in our house, we wouldn't have gone out that night. We wouldn't have been anywhere near that truck, or the driver who had fallen asleep at the wheel. Dad had died later, at the hospital. He had sustained intense injuries- crushed both legs when the front of the car had collapsed, cracked his skull, and broken several ribs, one of which had punctured a lung. Before the paramedics showed, he had already stopped breathing for several minutes, went into shock, and lost way too much blood. The doctors never had a chance.

And now here I was. I took a week off after the incident, then struggled through the final week of school, before staying in Chicago over my holiday break as things had been gotten in order. I was an orphan, at sixteen. Dad, being a lawyer, had arranged everything in a will, just in case. I'm sure he had never believed it would be needed so soon.

Unfortunately, it was, and on some level that was still being reasonable within me, I was grateful for his foresight, even though it seemed morbid to have such thoughts. An attorney took care of everything with the funeral arrangements, and had executed the will. That hadn't been so difficult- everything had been willed to me, in liquidated form, put in a trust fund. While that may have been predictable, since there really wasn't much other family, my parent's emergency plans for me where not.

"I'm going where!!?" I had yelled at the lawyer who sat at the desk in front of me, as I stood from my chair after hearing him read the final clause of the will, vaguely picking up that it was directions about what to do with me.

" Forks, Washington. Mr. Masen, I realize this may be a shock, but your parents obviously felt that your uncle, Mr. Charles Masen, was the appropriate choice for your guardian. Now, I've spoken to him, and he'll be here for the funeral in a couple of days, and then he would like you to finish with school here, after which you can make the trip back to Washington…"

Charlie- my father's brother. The one who insisted on being called Charlie because he couldn't stand the "stuffy" names their parents had given them. The one my Dad never talked to- at least not in the past few years. The one who had never wanted to leave their tiny hometown and lived there as a bachelor and worked as the chief of police.

"I can't believe this!" I had screamed. "I don't need a guardian! Can't I just stay here on my own?"

I realized as soon as the words were out of my mouth that such a thing was impossible- of course not, I had no money, and the trust fund was to be handled by Charlie. The attorney said the same things I was thinking, along with explaining that I needed someone, and that my parents had thought this was best. I had just nodded, knowing it wasn't avoidable.

Charlie had arrived two days later. We talked after the funeral, and he agreed to let me stay in Chicago until it was time for school in January, and then I could make the move. At least he had listened to my pleas to spend a little more time in my home. He had been reluctant at first, not wanting to leave me alone any longer than necessary, but I had convinced him that a couple more weeks wouldn't hurt anyone.

But now it was January, and my cab had stopped outside the airport. I paid the cabbie, grabbed my suitcase out of the trunk, and went to catch my flight.

******

A few hours later, I landed in Seattle where I caught another, smaller plane. An hour later I was in Port Angeles. It wasn't hard to spot Charlie- the terminal where I landed was tiny. Charlie grunted a hello, took my bag, and led me out to the police cruiser.

"So, how was the trip?" he asked, obviously a bit uncomfortable.

"Fine, I guess." I replied, with no real interest in my voice.

"Good…" he said, looking like he wanted to say more. I didn't know Charlie so well, but I could tell that he wanted to say something about my parents and attempt to make me feel better about being here. But I could also tell that he wasn't going to say anything- if my appraisal was correct, as they usually were when it came to people, Charlie was not a man of many words.

I waited a few more minutes in silence as we drove by the limitless green of forest on the narrow backroads. When no conversation started up, I put in the earbuds to my ipod. At least I wasn't going to have to worry about Charlie feeling like he needed to be my personal shrink.

About a dozen or so songs later, we drove by the Welcome to Forks sign. It wasn't long until we pulled up a brick driveway to a small two-story house. I climbed out, pulling out my earphones as I surveyed the house I had seen just two or three times. Though there had been little contact with Charlie recently since my father had gotten so caught up in his career, my parents had brought me out with them to visit for a couple weeks at a time every summer for a few years. Charlie was, after all, the only family either of them had left. Nothing much was different from what I remembered, except the faded red Chevy truck in the driveway, obviously from the 1950's. I looked at Charlie, who was opening up the trunk to the cruiser, raising my eyebrow as I walked over to help him with the bags.

"I don't remember that." I said, gesturing toward the pickup.

"Yeah, well, I figured you might need your own car out here, and Billy Black had this one, newly rebuilt engine and all…" he trailed off.

I looked over the truck. It was thoughtful of Charlie to get it, and I vaguely remembered Billy was a friend of Charlie's. He probably had gotten a pretty good price- I should be grateful.

"Thanks Charlie."

"You're welcome, now let's get these in the house- starting to rain." He said gruffly.

We walked up the drive, into the house. The place was small, but nice enough on the inside. The living room was off to the left, with a small couch, recliner, coffee table and a TV. I could tell the kitchen was through the doorway over to the left at the back of that room, but couldn't see much else before we went up the stairs. Charlie led me to the left, into a plain room with dark paneled walls. The bed was in the center of the room, with a dark navy bedspread. There was a desk over by the window, with an ancient looking computer on top. Charlie left the bag he was carrying by the door as I went in, sitting the largest suitcase on the bed.

"The bathroom is just down the hall- do you need anything else?" I could tell by his body language- standing by the doorframe, looking tentative- that he would be more than happy to leave me alone.

"No, I think I can handle it."

"Alright then…" he said, turning around and leaving the room. I could hear his footsteps as he walked downstairs, and the soon the sounds of the television wafted their way up to my room. I began unpacking my bags- something that didn't take so long. Once my clothes were in the closet and the dresser, with my CD collection lined up along the top of the dresser, there wasn't much left to do. I placed a picture of my parents on my desk, the final activity I could find. In the emptiness, a fresh wave of grief went through me. This wave was different though- I still grieved for my parents, but I was adjusting. This grief was the feeling that I had been entirely uprooted, left my life as I knew it behind. Sitting here in this foreign room, it was almost as if I was finally leaving my parents in the past- I couldn't grip onto them anymore in the same way without the familiar surroundings. Denial was no longer an option. Thinking those thoughts, I stripped off my jeans, and lay in my bed. The percussion of the rain against the roof kept me awake as I picked out beat after beat, until I finally blocked both the rain and my own thoughts with random music from my iPod.

*******

**Like it? Hate it? Let me know, because it will matter as to whether or not I continue this story- I'm still not sure if the story even works if their roles reversed. Try to be constructive please- but otherwise, don't hold anything back :)- review people!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks to the few people who reviewed/added this to their favorites/alerts. I really appreciate it!**

2. First Sight

In the morning, it was a moment before I recognized where I was. My eyes, still blurry with sleep took in the unfamiliar room, doused in the unfamiliar dull light. However, realization quickly washed over me. I groaned, and laid my head back and closed my eyes for just one more second. Gathering all my will power, I took a deep breath, then unwillingly climbed out of the bed, heading for the shower.

Just ten minutes later I was down in the kitchen, where I grudgingly grabbed a bowl of cereal. It wasn't my top pick for breakfast food, but whatever- I had to eat, and it wasn't like Charlie kept much else around in the nearly empty cabinets and fridge. The rest of the kitchen was equally bare- the cabinets were all painted white, and the appliances were all in the same color. There was no dishwasher, and the table was surrounded by mismatched chairs. There was little sign that the room was ever used.

Realizing I couldn't put off the inevitable, I rinsed my bowl, left it in the sink, and headed out the door in jeans, a t-shirt, and the new rain jacket I had acquired, book bag in tow. As I climbed in the truck cab, it occurred to me that I didn't know where the school was. In all the events of yesterday, and my anxiousness to just be alone, I had forgotten to ask. I went ahead and cranked the truck anyway, momentarily deafened by its roar. Charlie had already left, so I decided to just drive and try to find it on my own. It wasn't like Forks was a sprawling metropolis or anything- it couldn't be that hard.

I drove down the highway, quickly finding my way into the main part of Forks, and noticed a sign that pointed out the turn for the road that lead to Forks High. I followed it, and quickly came upon a brick sign that indicated the school. There were no chain link fences or gates, just a drive that led to several small brick buildings that looked nothing like the schools of Chicago.. I saw one building was labeled as the office, so I pulled up front, figuring I should go ahead and check in, even though I doubted I could park there.

I climbed out of the truck, putting on a completely composed face, despite the feelings of dread and reluctance that ran through me. I was wishing I could be anywhere else at the moment, but I knew I could, and would have to, bear it. I walked in the door, noticing that there were no metal detectors, and headed straight for the counter that split the space in two. It was covered with various bins, all filled with different papers, all in different pastel colors. Behind the counter sat a middle-aged woman, glasses held on a gold chain around her neck, over a short sleeved sweater. She smiled at me as I came in, and I noticed that she had entirely too much makeup on, as most women of her age tend to.

"Hello," I said in the politest tone I could muster, "I'm Edward Masen, and this is my first day here." I saw recognition flash in her eyes, and could virtually see the gears in her head turn as she took note of my last name, recognition shifting to pity. Her next words fit exactly with the reaction I expected from the thought processes I had just seen flash across her face- people were so easy to read.

"Oh yes dear, we've been expecting you. I'm Mrs. Cope." She said those simple words in a way that betrayed her knowledge of why I was here. Figures- in a small town everyone was bound to know all about me by now. Not only was I probably the first new kid to move to Forks in ages, I had come here under tragic circumstances. I was practically _made_ for small-town gossip.

Mrs. Cope proceeded to hand me several papers, a few for Charlie to sign, a schedule, a map, and a slip of paper to have each of my teachers sign. She even went through the trouble of highlighting the best routes on the map for me. When she was finished, I thanked her and walked back out to my truck. Noticing that students had begun to arrive, I cranked the truck, and followed the snake of traffic around the parking lot. I had hoped to escape notice, at least for a few minutes before school, but the volume of the truck's engine shot down that wish. I really would have to see if there was anything I could do about that- I mean, I was grateful to Charlie, but I dreamed of the low purr of a nice sports car. As I got out of the cab, I noticed that quite a few people were looking at me, not even trying to hide their fascination. I sighed, put in my ipod's head phones in an attempt at avoiding people for just a bit longer, and set out in a direction that I hoped would lead me to my first class.

Before I had made it very far, I felt someone tap my shoulder. I turned around and was confronted with a short, dark curly haired girl. I pulled out my headphones, and the girl immediately introduced herself.

"Hi, I'm Jessica Stanley- you must be Edward Masen, right?" She looked at me expectantly, with a wide smile on her face.

"Umm, yeah." I said, wondering if there was any way that my answer might be enough. As if there was the slightest possibility of that- Jessica looked like the persistent sort.

"Nice to meet you- what class do you have first?"

No luck. She wasn't going anywhere. Not that I really minded too much, I just wished I could have had more time before I was forced to play social games. I pulled out my schedule, giving it a quick glance.

"English."

"Great! I have the same class! I'll walk with you and show you the way."

I let Jessica guide me toward the building, though I had been on the right path and could have easily gotten there on my own. I liked to think of myself as a nice guy, and there was no need to hurt Jessica's feelings.

She babbled on for a bit, asking me about how I was liking Forks, the rain, and other trivial issues. Though I knew she must have known about my parents, surprisingly, she didn't bring it up. I could tell she wanted to though- the conversation was just awkward enough to reveal that much.

I was thankful when we arrived at building three, and she quickly left my side to grab a seat after hanging up our rain jackets. I headed toward the front of the room, handing the teacher the slip I was supposed to get signed. He signed it quickly, handed me a syllabus and several books, and then pointed me toward a seat. Thankfully, it was toward the back of the room. Of course, that didn't stop the students from gawking at me. I did my best to ignore them, coolly walking to my seat and then focusing on the teacher's back-from-break speech. I wasn't flustered by all of the attention- I just didn't understand it, and was slightly amused. Back in Chicago, I had been one of thousands. And while not exactly a loner, I hadn't been at the height of popularity either. I fell somewhere in the middle there, and had been comfortable with that. It probably had to do with my preference of solitude and music to chattering on about meaningless dribble, which, unfortunately, wasn't recognized as a virtue in the usual high school circles. Still, I had managed a decent social life, one that didn't include an entire school making me the center of the gossip. That, however, was exactly what was happening here.

I sat through the rest of first period, and began gathering my things, ready to make it to my next class. I looked up when from my bag when a girl with long golden blond hair came up to me.

"Hi- Edward, right? I'm Lauren." she said.

"Yeah, hey, nice to meet you Lauren." I answered, unsure of what else to say- shouldn't she be changing classes rather than socializing?

"Where you headed after this?" What was it with the girls in this place wanting to know about my class schedule? I knew I should probably be flattered, but I really just wanted to be left alone.

"Uhmm…government."

"Oh, well, I'm headed the other way, but that's just down the walkway over in building six. I could walk with you." she offered, a tinge of hope in her voice.

"I guess that would be ok." I said, while secretly thinking it was a bit ridiculous. She had said herself she was going the other way. Yet again, I felt compelled to be nice in spite of myself.

Second period was mostly a repeat of the first. I was dropped off by an overeager girl, I had my slip signed, got my textbook and syllabus, only to have the class sneak glances my way for the entire fifty minutes. The rest of the day continued on in the same manner, until lunch eventually came. A guy with carefully ordered and gelled hair spikes who had been in both my Trig and Spanish class- I think he had said his name was Mike- offered a place at his table for lunch. I took him up on it, and before I knew it, I was being introduced to several people. The only names I could remember were Jessica's and Lauren's, who happened to be at the table. Other than that, the small dark haired girl beside Jessica and the two guys sitting at the end of the table remained nameless inside my head.

After introductions were made, I sat and listened to the conversation going on around me. Quickly, I was pulled into my own thoughts and observations, and my mind began to wander. Slowly, my eyes also began to take in the small cafeteria. Nothing caught my interest, and I didn't really recognize anyone else from that day. As I turned my gaze toward the windows, I saw them for the first time.

They all sat at a table farther away from where the largest number of people was concentrated. But that wasn't why I noticed them. Nor was it the fact that they didn't really seem to be eating or drinking anything, despite the full trays of food sitting in front of each of them. It also wasn't their lack of attention to each other or anyone else in the cafeteria, or the way they stared at various different points in the cafeteria; the wall, the ceiling, the floor.

What caught my attention was the way they all looked so similar, while being completely different. The way they all held the same level of attractiveness, while maintaining individuality. There, at the table off in the corner sat five extremely pale people, each looking like they could be some sort of model, except for the dark shadows under their eyes, indicating that they could all use a good night's rest. First, there was one huge guy with curly dark hair. He looked like he could easily destroy me. Despite that, he still seemed like he was probably a fun-loving sort of guy, though he was probably an athlete. Next to him was a girl with perfectly blonde hair- really everything about her was perfect. No one would argue that she was drop-dead gorgeous- though, personally, blonds weren't really my thing and there was no way a girl that beautiful wouldn't have some sort of attitude problem. There was another tall blond guy, who vaguely looked like he belonged in Hollywood, except for the pained expression on his face. He definitely did not want to be here. Beside him was a dark-haired girl, whose hair spiked out in every direction. Everything about her was small, from her frame to her tiny angular features. I imagined her personality matched her appearance- childlike and enthusiastic. Finally, by herself at the end of the table was a girl with long chestnut brown cascading gently to the middle of her back. She looked the youngest of them all- the others could have easily passed as college students. She also gripped my attention in a way that none of the others did, despite how similar they all appeared. She had a certain air of mysteriousness about her, keeping me from making any attempts at pegging what sort of person she was- something I was usually able to do easily. For whatever reason, I felt like there was no way I could sum that girl up in a glance- beyond the obvious fact that she was lovely.

"Edward…Edward, what are you looking at?" I snapped back to my surroundings at once when I heard Mike's questioning tone. I thought quickly, deciding to answer his question with a question.

"Who are they?" I asked, nodding my head toward the table in the corner.

"Oh, them. They're the Cullens. Kids of Dr. Cullen and his wife." I thought about that for a moment.

"Really? They don't look much alike- except maybe the two blond ones."

"You're right- they're not. The tall blond one, he's Jasper Hale. His twin sister is the blond girl, Rosalie Hale. The Cullens adopted them several years ago. The other three are Mrs. Cullen's nieces and nephew- Emmett, Alice, and Bella- she's had them since they were little and their parents died. The weirdest part is that they're all together, like couples." I nodded as I glanced over again- that last bit made sense as I considered their seating arrangement in the light of new information.

"C'mon, Mike, you know they're not really related." chimed in one of the guys, the shortest of the three.

"It's still strange Ben- they do live together. Although- that probably makes things easier…" The short one, Ben, rolled his eyes. And I began to tune them out again.

While I had to admit I could understand the scandal, I didn't want to hear a whole discussion about the pros and cons of the situation. I was still intrigued by the girl with the long brown hair, and I realized I still didn't know what her name was- just that she was Mrs. Cullen's niece. I was still looking at her when her eyes shot up, looking straight my way. I quickly looked away- I didn't want to get caught staring at her.

"What's the name of the one with the long brown hair?" I asked Mike again, not really noticing that I was interrupting some sort of comment about the ease and convenience of slipping from room to room at night if you lived in the same house.

The other guy sitting at the table smirked, answering for Mike.

"That one's Bella- I wouldn't really think about it if I were you. She doesn't seem to care about any of the guys around here- she turned Mike down under a month ago."

"Shut up Tyler- it isn't like you haven't been turned down by her too." Mike answered hotly.

I thought about protesting the implication they were making, then thought better of it. They were already distracted again with insulting each other's pride, and wouldn't be giving me a second thought. Not that I wouldn't mind getting a chance to know the girl- but I really had only asked out of curiosity. Not that a name helped me read her any better. I listened to them taunt each other for a moment, entertained, before looking back over at the table. By the time I looked, they little one had risen, gliding away with her tray. A moment later, the other four followed suit, but not before Bella had met my eyes again, with what looked like humor on her face. I quickly returned back to my table's conversation, slightly embarrassed, dropping comments here and there, while my mind pondered the enigma of Bella Cullen.

**A/N: How'd I do? Edward too girly? Does it drag? What do you think- review people, and let me know- flame me if you wish- I don't care, just review! And remember- you're comments matter- I'm still insecure and uncertain about whether this story will work, so I need you're suggestions/criticism/encouragment if you want it to continue. But I won't be one of those people who demand a certain amount of reviews to update- I just truly need the help :).**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** I'm sorry this chapter took so long for those of you who have been following it- I'm back in classes at college, so I don't have as much time- I'll try and update at least once a week. I promise I'm not abandoning this story- I want to see where it goes too! Thanks to the couple of people who reviewed the last chapter. They were great- but I would love to have even more!

**Disclaimer:** Still not the amazing genius (*cough* Stephenie Meyer) who owns Twilight- I know…sad times…

3. Biology

I had never been so enthusiastic about heading back to class after a lunch period in my entire school career. After Bella had so embarrassingly caught me staring at her again, I had been forced to endure ten more minutes of the testosterone-fest that Mike and Tyler had started. They alternated between inappropriate discussions of the multitude of possibilities that came with living in the same house as one's significant other, and trying to determine who was most pathetic, as measured by the manner they had each been rejected by Bella. Meanwhile, I worked hard to tune them out- unfortunately, some things are just not possible. I mean, at first it was amusing- just like playing with a child who insists on throwing down their sippy-cup or toy over and over again just to watch you pick it up. Eventually though, the immature act gets annoying and makes you want to scream. Thus, I spent the longest ten minutes of my life wishing for the end of the lunch period, and considering whether or not it would be rude to put in my iPod and literally drown out their conversation. To be fair, Ben also sat there looking slightly disgusted, and we exchanged a glance of mutual irritation. That is, when he looked away from the small dark haired girl sitting at the other end of the table, sandwiched between Jessica and Lauren. That alone surprised me- I'm sure he wouldn't have been able to avert his gaze if the girl hadn't suddenly returned his stare. It was apparent that the two of them had feelings for each other, even to an outsider like me. Yet, I would be willing to bet money that neither of them knew the way the other felt- I could just tell.

Mercifully, just as I came to this conclusion, the bell rang and relieved me from the ridiculous turn Mike and Tyler's conversation had taken. I sprang up as quickly as possible and rushed to empty my tray. I turned around from the bank of garbage cans, ready to make a beeline for my next class, hoping that I wouldn't be accosted by anyone else today. Of course, my dreams never do come true.

There, standing where I nearly tumbled straight over her, was Jessica.

"Sorry." I mumbled, trying to make it obvious with my body language that I needed to get around her. She held her ground.

"Don't worry about it- where are you headed in such a hurry though?" What kind of question was that- where else should I be going- considering we were in a _school_ building?

"Bio." I answered shortly, rather than insult her intelligence.

"That's great! I'm in that class too- let me walk with you?"

"Sure." I choked out, against the "no!" that resounded through my head and my own better judgment.

So Jessica walked with me over to the building where the science lab was. Thankfully, she couldn't sit with me, because everyone already had their own lab partner. At least something was going well. I walked towards the front desk to have the teacher sign my slip. I went through the usual process, the teacher handed me all the materials, and told me to take the one open seat in the class. I glanced up, scanning the room to find where he was talking about. As I surveyed the room, I saw her.

Bella was the only one who didn't have a partner beside her, seated to the far left of the room, by the windows, third row. She looked up as I walked towards her, passing through the stream of heated air that poured through the only vent in the room on my way down the aisle. This time, Bella was transformed as her eyes locked with mine- the intensity of her stare was enough for my steps to stutter a moment, temporarily stopping me in my tracks. It was strange- her eyes had been filled with humor the two times we traded gazes in the cafeteria, and even if that humor was because of me, I was ok with that. But now, her eyes were pitch-black and filled with some emotion I couldn't place- it resembled anger mixed with hatred, and something else too- maybe desire? Not the kind of desire that any guy would kill to have her look at him with though. Just like the anger and hatred, it seemed different from anything I had ever encountered, and I had no way of judging what she was thinking the way I usually could from the look in someone's eyes, or from their body language.

Somehow I managed to regain control of my motor control after a second, and I took my seat in the chair at the table. Rather than look back into Bella's fearsome eyes, I preoccupied myself with taking out a notebook and putting away my Ipod, all the while feeling her eyes burn into me. I glanced her way out of the corner of my eye, and noticed her hands gripped around the underneath edge of the table. I was uncomfortable under her stare, and even felt a bit of fear, though confusion ultimately won out. I was debating whether or not to say hello despite Bella's current demeanor, when class started, saving me from the decision. I stared straight ahead, trying to focus, but unable to shake the awareness that I was still being bored into by Bella's impenetrable eyes. Then, suddenly, like a switch had been hit, I felt her gaze avert, and her body shift away from me, as far as was possible.

I felt a new wave of wonder fill me- why was she acting this way? My attention to the teacher broke, and I was at a total loss over Bella's actions. Certainly there was no way I could have suddenly provoked such a response- I hadn't done anything, had I? Why had she slid so far away- did I smell bad? But then, that didn't explain the emotions raging in her eyes. I sniffed at myself a bit anyway, as discreetly as possible. I sat there, uncomfortable and wracking my brain for the cause of Bella's reaction, unable to come to an answer and not hearing a word about whatever topic of biology we were supposed to be learning about. About halfway through class I gathered up the courage to sneak a look her way. Her long hair was cascading around her shoulder now, so I couldn't see her face in order to discover if her disposition had altered any at all. I could see that she still had her hands clenched in fists underneath the desk, and that her entire body was just as tense, as if it were on the verge of springing like some great predator. I laughed at myself for that thought- Bella was just a tiny girl for goodness sake! I continued to stare, trying to make sense of any of this- not that Bella had fit into any of my reasoning abilities so far.

Finally, a painful hour from the first time I saw her eyes burn with that terrifying intensity, Bella sprang up, seemingly at the exact moment the bell rang, and rushed out of the room faster than I had ever seen anyone move.

I stared after her in disbelief until Jessica's voice shocked me back to reality.

"What did you do to Bella Cullen, Edward? Pull her hair or something?"

"Huh?"

I looked at her, confused- I'm sure I looked a bit ridiculous. When I didn't answer in any other way, she slowly elaborated, like she was talking to someone who was missing a few.

"I've never seen her act that way with anyone- she seemed really upset or angry about something. What happened?"

I muttered something about not having a clue, and excused myself to head to my next class, this time not giving her a chance to offer to show me to any more classes.

I dragged through my last few classes, slowly putting the events of Biology as far out of my head as was possible. Eventually, the end of the day came, leaving me several textbooks heavier and with a swarm of name, faces, and directions to classes incomprehensibly jumbled in my head. I made my way back to the office building to turn in my slip, contemplating the strangest first day of school I had ever had- small towns really were odd. As I stepped inside out of the perpetual drizzle I was getting used to, I saw that the truly enigmatic part of my first day, Bella, was talking with Mrs. Cope animatedly.

"Isn't there any way, any other science class I could take?" she was asking.

"I'm sorry dear, everything is full." Mrs. Cope answered, as another girl stepped in behind me and dropped a piece of paper in one of the bins sitting along the counter, where the papers rustled from the breeze. In the same moment, Bella stiffened, exactly like she had in biology.

"Fine. I understand- it's not possible, I'll just have to deal with it." Bella responded tersely, turning on the ball of her foot, gliding past me without a look, and out the door.

For the second time that day, I was shocked at Bella Cullen, and was again stopped in my tracks. Not like a deer in headlights, out of fear, but out of disbelief. I made myself function again, and turned in my piece of paper, then rushed out of the office and to my truck. As I cranked the engine, I felt a rush of emotion that surprised me. Mostly, I was bewildered, and that overrode everything else, because I was used to understanding people. Frustration coursed through me, along with indignation at the way Bella was treating me, and a bit of anger at myself for caring at all. I clutched the steering wheel tightly as I pulled out of the school lot, and all the way back to Charlie's.

**A/N: Sorry if this is a bit short...please review- loved it? hated it? neither? Tell me- I'm dying to know! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

4. Reappearance

**A/N: So, I've been feeling the flow a lot more lately, which is good news for all of you, and very bad news for my GPA, my sleeping habits, and the Poli test I have on Thursday. Meh- I'm an author- can't deny inspiration. Hope you all like this!**

**Disclaimer: Do we have to go through this again- I promise I'm not SM.**

The next day at Forks High was a little better. At least this time I knew what to expect of people, and didn't have to go through that whole first-day ordeal again.

On the other hand, I was still left with the mystery of Bella Cullen. She, and her actions yesterday, had been on my mind all night long, from the moment I woke up this morning, and had stayed with me as I made my way into the school building.

It was in that distracted and frustrated state that I made my way to English- knowing my way around was another perk of the day. At least Jessica and Lauren now had fewer excuses to force their company on me in between classes. Unfortunately, because I was used to the sound of cars in Chicago rather than the rain and wind of Forks, I hadn't slept much the night before. It hadn't helped that my mind had been racing, trying to make sense of Bella- I just wasn't used to not understanding people.

My lack of sleep obviously was not conducive to learning. In English, the teacher asked me a question about what a quote from Shakespeare meant, calling my name several times. I had to ask her to repeat the question, and still got it wrong. Something else I wasn't accustomed to- I usually had the answers. It seemed that it wasn't going to be so easy to get used to Forks after all.

Mercifully, lunch came. Of course, Jessica invited me to sit with her at lunch. I agreed- no one wants to sit alone at lunch, even if it means enduring unwelcome and uncomfortable attention.

Soon after, Mike, then Lauren joined us. Eventually Tyler, Ben, and Angela also came over. So at least it wouldn't be awkward with just the two of us. In fact, Mike seemed to be doing a decent job of keeping Jessica's attention, and for the moment, Tyler also had Lauren distracted.

I was just considering how thankful I was that I didn't have to endure another session of ribbing between Mike and Tyler, when I was suddenly reminded of Bella, the reason they had started that childishness in the first place. I tried to nonchalantly scan the cafeteria crowds.

This time I knew exactly where to look, and sure enough, there were the Cullens. Except…there was only four of them- Bella was missing. Why wasn't she here? My mind raced as I struggled to comprehend. As I ran through every possibility, I couldn't settle on one, and wondered if there was any way I had anything to do with her absence.

I was distracted for the rest of lunch, but no one seemed to notice as I brooded at my end of the table, somehow situated between Angela and Ben. Of course, they were too distracted sneaking Victorian glances at each other to even be aware of my presence. Finally, the bell rang, and for the second time in my life, I was grateful that I could go back to class.

Probably, it was the hope I didn't realize I was holding that Bella would be in Biology that inspired this strange eagerness to give up my free time to the dulling powers that only high school can exert on the human consciousness. But, you know, stranger things have happened.

As I entered the room, hanging up my rain jacket with everyone else's, I let my gaze sweep across the rows of tables. It was apparent that Bella was not there, and I felt myself sag down a bit, giving into the reality of monotony the rest of the day would hold.

I listened to Mr. Banner's lecture, even though it was on a topic I had already learned this year, back in Chicago. I suffered through the next couple of classes before finally making my way to gym, which I also suffered through, but instead of enduring in apathy, I struggled through my disdain for institutionalized physical activity. I had no particular aversion to sports- I just didn't particularly like the ones they made you play in class. Why volleyball instead of something more exciting, like baseball?

Still, it was my final class, and the day was finally at an end. Somehow, I managed to make it out of class after only speaking briefly with Jessica before starting out to the parking lot. I climbed in the old rusted tank of a Chevy, pulled out of the lot, and pushed the car to its limits all the way home.

Arriving home, I went up to my room, and did a bit of homework while I waited for Charlie to get back. We ordered in dinner, sat in front of the TV and ate in silence, making comments on the baseball game during the commercials.

At some point, Charlie asked me about my day. I let him know that school was fine, and mentioned Jessica to him.

"Jessica's a good girl- I know her mom. They're a great family for this town." I nodded, acknowledging his answer before making another comment and changing the subject. I really didn't want to talk about Jessica.

"You know, no one seems to like the Cullens very much- they keep to themselves a lot…"

Charlie cut me off. "Darn small towns and people gossiping. The Cullens are good people- and Dr. Cullen is an amazing physician that this town should be grateful to have- lucky Mrs. Cullen likes it her. And those children haven't done a thing wrong- I was worried at first about so many teenagers, but not one problem out of them- people should mind their own business!"

I stared at Charlie in slight shock- that was the most I'd ever heard him say at once.

"I was just making an observation- they seem great…" The conversation died from there, and after while I slipped away to do homework before going to bed. I could feel the beginning of a pattern.

The rest of the week passed slowly, involving the same basic cycle every day. I would get up, eat some cereal (which I was advancing from dislike to hate of), go to school, suffer through classes and Jessica, Mike, and Lauren, then come home, order in dinner, eat silently in front of the TV with Charlie, do homework, then head to bed. Bella didn't show at school for the rest of the week, even though the other Cullens were there every day. I was still sure that her absence had something to do with me, even though I had no clue what it was. Thankfully, by the time the weekend arrived, though I hadn't forgotten about her, Bella and her absence had moved to the back of my mind.

By Monday, I was ready to try and move on. Maybe she had dropped out, or gotten deathly ill, or switched schools. I had no idea, and I was no determined to not care. That was my resolve as I entered school on Monday morning, making my way through English class, this time alert and ready for questions. When class ended, we all began to head outside to change classes, but the first few students out the door froze, blocking us in. Quickly, a murmur built- it was snowing.

I smiled- snow I was used to- Chicago got plenty of it. I shrugged on my jacket and made my way to class through the crowds, enjoying the falling snow. That is, until I felt a snowball hit my back, obviously coming from Tyler, who was walking in the wrong direction for his next class. I quickly retaliated, then turned the corner, and ducked into my class, where Mike Newton accosted me. He prattled off a plan for a snowball fight after school in the parking lot. I smiled- I thought it was a great plan.

Lunch eventually came around, and I enjoyed walking through the snow before ducking into the cafeteria and getting in line with Mike. We were going through when I reflexively looked toward the corner. There was the quartet of Cullens, but I was taken aback at the sight of long chestnut hair. Bella was back. I felt my heart leap a little in my chest, right before it jammed itself in my throat, efficiently killing my appetite.

"Dude, what's wrong- you look kind of pale." Mike brought me out of my reverie, and I forced myself to work my feet and slide my tray forward.

"Nothing- it's nothing." I said. We sat at our usual table, and I commenced pretending to focus on what was happening there, while I snuck looks over at the Cullens. Just as had happened before, Bella met my gaze. I quickly averted my eyes, putting sincere effort into concentrating on Mike and Tyler's conversation.

"Dude," Mike started again- he really should work on his sentence structure and variety, "Bella Cullen is definitely staring at you."

I clenched my jaw in an effort to not look. "What does she look like?"

Mike looked at me like I had grown two heads. "What do you mean? Like she always does- hot." Tyler gave him a high five. I sighed in disgust and exasperation- was he serious? How could anyone…? Ugh. Fine, I would simplify.

"I mean, does she look like she's angry or something?" Again with the 'you're the strange one" look. Oh well.

"No- why, did you do something to make her angry?"

I ignored the question, looking up at her, expecting to see her black eyes boring back into mine, possibly with the menace I remembered in them.

Instead, I was greeted by the sight of Emmett and Jasper shaking snow out of their hair at the girls while they tried to lean away, laughing. Of course- they were just enjoying the snow day like the rest of us. I shook my head at myself, thinking about how silly I was being, not to mention self-centered. I returned my attention back to my table, and this time, kept it there for the rest of lunch.

For once, I wasn't overly-eager to head to class, except for the prospect of sitting beside of Bella again. I tried not to count on it though- who knew, maybe she would leave early. After all, the snow had turned to rain during lunch- didn't seem like the kind of day to hinge your bets on anything. I mentally hit myself in the head- why did I care so much anyway, and why was I nervous? This was stupid, I mumbled to myself, making my way to my seat.

I pulled out my notebook, along with my IPod, listening to it for a few minutes before class started. I had arrived a little early, and students slowly trickled in. I had my eyes closed, nose pinched between my forefinger and thumb when I felt a presence beside of me. I opened my eyes, pulled out the earphones and looked up at her, realizing she was looking at me expectantly. The moment she saw that she had my attention, the most beautiful, melodic, tinkling sound in the world emitted from her perfect strawberry colored lips.

"Hi, I'm Bella Cullen…I didn't get a chance to introduce myself last time- Edward, right?"

**A/N: Sorry for the cliff, and sorry for cutting this chapter in half, and that its mostly building action. I know its short, but its two AM, and I have class at 9:30 in the morning, and I want to do the rest of this right. So, I will try to post soon- I post sooner if you review ********. Oh- and you should check out my other story, La Tua Cantante- what if Edward couldn't help but bite Bella the first day? BTW, I know there are WAY more people reading this than reviewing- hundreds- so- just let me know what you think, and I think its way awesome that people from places like Mexico, Philippines, Sweden, etc. are reading my stuff!**


	5. My ExcuseAN

**A/N: So, guys, I know I've promised to not slack off on my updates too much again, but I've developed tendinitis in my right wrist, and the doctor put it in this brace that completely immobilizes my wrist. Which is great, because it doesn't hurt as much. Except I feel so disabled- it's really hard to type (don't even get me started on writing by hand…), so I may or may not update for about a week. It just takes so long to type something. So, we'll see, but I wanted you all to know the reason if I suddenly drop off the face of the Earth. Good news, I should be ready to go in about a week when the brace comes off. So sorry for the AN- I know they're annoying…**


	6. Chapter 5

5. Conversation

**A/N: Yay for updates. Anyway, here you go. Thank my viewing of the movie (for free- my college shows a couple free movies a weekend, and Twilight showed four times this last weekend- I only went twice) for this finally getting done- it inspired me, even if the movie does get funnier every time I watch it. **

**Dislcaimer: Don't own it…in fact, Twilight owns me…**

I was in complete shock. I couldn't process what was happening. What had happened to scary Bella from last week? This Bella was warm and polite- and she had just asked me a question.

"Right, Edward. Nice to meet you Bella." How I managed to sound so normal, I may never know, because my mind was racing.

She smiled shyly at me and I grinned back, awkwardly. Neither one of us said anything else. What else could we say? All I could think about was the strange encounter we had last week, though now I was beginning to think I may be out of my mind. Bella seemed so different now that I couldn't even imagine that it was the same person as the one who had stared me down for half the period and pretended I didn't exist for the second half. I wanted to ask her where she had been, but that seemed like the kind of question an obsessive stalker may ask. So I left it alone, and she just sat down, pulling out a notebook and pen.

Even if she was acting more civilized, I couldn't help but notice that she edged her chair as far away from me as possible. What was it with this girl? Was she afraid of me?

Thankfully, before the silence could get too weird, the bell rang and Mr. Banner began talking. He announced that today we would be performing a lab, and commenced handing out the materials.

We were supposed to look at slides of onion root cells and record which phase of mitosis they were in- without looking in our textbooks. As soon as he tacked on that little bit of information, I noticed half the class visibly react. Many just tucked their books on their laps underneath the tables. I placed mine in my bag. Really, I didn't need to cheat- I had done this lab in Chicago before, in the AP class I had been in.

Bella and I received the slides and turned on the microscope.

"Wanna go first?" she asked. I stared at her, in awe. I really had to stop that and start answering her questions.

"Or we could do 'ladies first'" she suggested, obviously worrying about my abilities in the sciences since I couldn't even respond to her like a sentient being.

"No, I can do it." I said, reaching for the slide she held in her hand. She handed it over, and as she placed the thin rectangle of glass in my palm, her fingers brushed against my thumb. They were ice cold, and my hand involuntarily jerked back.

"Sorry." She mumbled, sitting down the slide on the table and pushing it towards me, her eyes cast down in embarrassment. I felt awful for making her uncomfortable, and cursed myself for pulling back. Even if it was involuntary, I was allowed to be angry at myself.

"No problem." I responded, slipping the slide under the microscope, focusing it in the highest power possible. I gave it the shortest glance possible, before announcing the answer.

"Anaphase." I said quickly. I wanted to prove I wasn't as idiotic as my apparent temporary lack of ability to complete sentences or pretend to have manners might lead one to believe.

She looked at me curiously, as if wondering if I really did know the answer.

"Mind if I check it?"

Ah- well, she did have good reason to assume I would be wrong. I nodded, pushing the microscope her way.

She looked at the slide for even less time than I had, but agreed with me. "Anaphase."

"Like I said…" I responded, after she saw that I was right.

She smiled, and switched the slides, quickly saying the answer- prophase- and writing it down. Wanting to return her favor, I cleared my throat.

"May I?" I asked, turning on every bit of charm I had acquired back in Chicago and nodding toward the microscope. To be fair, that didn't amount to very much. Most girls, or at least ones my mother would have approved of, didn't go for that whole dark mysterious loner thing. At the thought of my mother, a small pang stabbing at my heart made me internally wince, but I just accepted and acknowledged the pain before pushing it away. I certainly wasn't fully recovered from my parent's sudden death yet, but with all the changes in my life, it was easy to get lost in them and forget that I was an orphan.

In many ways, my ability to seemingly carry on with my life like nothing happened made me feel guilty. Yet I knew my parents, my mother especially, would have expected me to continue on with my life and make the most of it. They had always just wanted me to be happy and live a full and successful life. So that was what I was trying to do- I had to push forward and that meant I couldn't spend all my time grieving. Still, the sadness and trauma of the events that had only occurred about a month and a half before would unexpectedly sweep over me in the strangest moments, as they had now. I had learned to fight through the moment and save the grief for when I could deal with it alone-I was actually pretty skilled at doing that with any emotion.

Like now, when I forced myself back into reality and the task at hand. In response to my question, Bella just pushed the microscope my way, hardly reacting to my attempt at flirtation.

It took me just a glance to see that it was prophase after my eyes adjusted to the tunnel of the microscope lens. When I said so, Bella repeated my own response from a few moments before.

"Like I said…"

I just shook my head, and switched the slide out. This time, when I identified it, she didn't ask to check it, and I didn't when she read the fourth slide.

Pretty soon we were done with the lab, and had nothing left to do. I could feel a bit of an awkward silence working its way in, so I decided to just go to the elephant in the room.

"You weren't around last week." I said, turning my statement into a question through my tone.

She looked at me, and I could see that she was unsure whether or not to explain herself. If only I could figure out why she seemed so uncertain…I tried to concentrate harder, to see if I could maybe figure her out by proximity and conversation. Though I had never tried to work so hard to make sense of someone- usually it just came naturally. I should have known that extra effort wasn't going to make a difference. Instead, I stubbornly tried to get a glimmer of what her internal motivations were.

A small smile turned the corners of her lips up as I focused on her, but I had no idea why. As soon as I saw it, the rueful smirk was gone and replaced by a small spark of shock. It to vanished quickly.

"No, I wasn't. I, well- I just had some personal things to deal with." She said, getting a little flustered as she spoke, but being clear that she didn't want to talk about it.

So I wasn't going to get an explanation. I looked into her eyes for a moment longer, then dropped my gaze. I didn't know what else to say, since she was being so uncooperative.

"So- how do you like Forks? The cold and the rain and all?" she asked, changing the subject in a not-so-artful fashion.

This was so incredibly awkward. I laughed at how absurd this conversation was, considering the way Bella had acted just last week.

"What's so amusing?" she asked, genuinely confused.

"It's just- I don't understand you at all. Last week you acted pretty strange, and now you're asking me about the weather?"

"Yeah, I am." She said indignantly, not even touching the first half of my statement. Bella was stubborn.

Fine- I would answer her question and go along with the charade. Who knew? Maybe she would open up eventually.

"Forks is a lot smaller than where I'm from in Chicago. But the weather isn't so different- I'm used to the cold, so the rain is the only thing unusual." I said, thinking about how asinine my answer was.

"Do you miss it- Chicago?" she asked, gazing into my eyes as she switched gears.

"Yeah, of course. Chicago was my home all of my life, until…" I trailed off, realizing I had just alluded to the one thing I hadn't spoken to anyone about out loud. I immediately was embarrassed, and wished I could take my words back. I wasn't exactly the sort to air all of my feelings out in the open- I knew that if it made me uncomfortable, that I should place that burden on anyone else. And certainly not Bella.

Except, that Bella was the one person I had slipped to. What about her made me so willing to speak about things I had been determined to keep my mouth shut about? Why was I ok with being so honest with her- and why didn't she even flinch at the mention of the great tragedy that had been the subject of hushed gossip around Forks since before I arrived?

"That's hard." She said knowingly. I had forgotten the story of her, Alice, and Emmett. Their parents had supposedly died too, according to Mike. That was the story anyway.

Not that I was going to ask questions. I was thankful that Bella had left it where she had as well. That didn't stop me from staring into her eyes though, where I saw the same sadness that I had felt flit across them. She almost looked like she should be crying, except no tears welled in her eyes. Her golden eyes.

Wait a minute. Her eyes had been black last time I had seen her. Hadn't they been? Yes- they definitely had been- I wouldn't ever forget the way Bella's eyes had been a hard and cold onyx that first day.

"Did you get contacts?" I blurted out, not thinking to filter my words. Lord- now I was the kid who asked strange questions with no warning.

She scrunched her eyebrows together, then cast her eyes down before answering me.

"No." she said, looking up again. When her face came back up, she was looking at me like I had two heads and should be in special education classes. But I knew what I had seen- how had her eyes changed color? Not that I was complaining- I thought her eyes were the most beautiful thing in the world.

"Really- they were black last time I saw you?" I said, allowing the faintest taste of doubt color my question.

"Yeah- I know." She said, flustered again. "It's just…the fluorescents in this school." She said.

It was totally lame excuse, but what else could explain the change?

Before I could say anything else and question her explanation, the bell rang, and Bella jumped up, dashing out of the classroom as quickly as she had the last time.

I watched her back move away from me, in wonderment at how she managed to vanish so quickly. I shook my head, pulling my bag up onto the table before jamming my books into my pack. I left the classroom, walking past Jessica and barely even noticing her attempt at trying to stop me. I could not even deal with patronizing her right now- I had too much on my mind.

I proceeded to head to my next class, preoccupied with how Bella Cullen was going to drive me insane.

__

I went through the rest of the day distracted by Bella. That seemed to be becoming the usual order of things. My life would be going smoothly along, then Bella would glide through, throw everything I knew out the proverbial window, and leave me in a state of confusion that prevented me from focusing on anything normal.

Really, it was becoming quite annoying and starting to think something was wrong with me. How was a girl able to mess with me like this- nothing ever got to me. I had walls miles high, several layers thick, and reinforced with steel. Now one girl was able to raise just her pinky finger and topple the entire system with the slightest touch.

Of course, Bella wasn't the usual girl, but still. Even an amazingly goddess-like, intelligent, sweet-voiced girl cloaked-in mystery was still just a girl- right?

I was contemplating how I was going to snap myself out of this and buck up as I walked to the parking lot.

Though the snow had stopped directly after lunch, sometime during the last period the rain had begun to freeze in patches. I walked with my ipod in, rain jack hood up, and trying to focus on avoiding the ice on the sidewalk. I reached my truck, thankful that the heater worked.

Unfortunately, I realized, I wasn't sure if the tires were ok to drive on the icy roads. I should at least check them so I would know what to expect. I threw my bag in the cab of the truck, closed the door, then walked back to the corner of the truck. I kicked the tire, surprised a little that it was pretty firm. Air pressure, check.

Tread were another question. I leaned down to check the grooves that traced patterns in the black smelly rubber. They were ok in some places, but a little shallow in other ones. Great- I knew I should have put some new tires or chains on these. Now I would have to drive even slower than what the truck forced on me. I groaned at the prospect, beginning to straighten up.

That's when I heard the squeal of tires heading behind me. I whipped around, confronted with the sight of Tyler's van coming at me- quickly. Screw.

Though I saw the van coming and could see that it was clearly out of control, I couldn't think of anyway to react. My body seemed to fail me- my mind worked at a frantic pace, taking in every detail of the scene. I could see the looks of horror on the faces of Mike, Jessica, Lauren, Angela and Ben. Even more oddly, I saw Bella across the parking lot, standing by a red M3 with her family. On her face I saw complete fear mixed with what appeared to me to be consideration. I had no idea what that may be, but I knew the look of weighing options. I was in shock that I was able to take in any of this at all while my body was frozen in place.

I thought about that night not so long ago when another motorized vehicle had come barreling at me, out of control and going entirely to fast. I wondered yet again if one really didn't feel anything if they died suddenly. I though about whether or not there was an afterlife- I decided I believed so, since I couldn't imagine this world existing without God. What would it be like? Would I see my parents again?

I had no idea- but I did know I didn't really want to die, even if I had barely been present for my life lately. Yet, it seemed that death was inevitable and that it would come soon.

I shot up a quick prayer toward heaven, hoping God, whatever he was like, would hear it. Then I braced myself for impact, frozen solidly to the ground like the raindrops in their icy puddles.

I squeezed my eyes shut, right before feeling something solid and hard strike me with force. I hit the ground, and waited for death to come as I heard the sound of metal against metal. Except no pain came, other than the pounding in my head that came from hitting it against the wet pavement.

I opened my eyes then, still sensing the van moving. That's when I saw Bella, that lovely angel, with her back to me. She was positioned between me and the dark, shiny metal of Tyler's van's driver's side. I watched without believing what I saw.

Her hands were planted in the side of the van, holding it away from me. The metallic crushing sound I had heard just a moment before came from where the van had struck the bed of my truck, leaving a dent. I watched in awe as Bella, who I had always thought looked fragile, pushed against the van to keep it away, then quickly shifted to hold its underside to keep the van from toppling over. Finally, she let it go and its tires hit the ground hard, causing a resonating crash that made my entire body flinch.

Then, there was silence. Nothing moved, and only the slightest creaking pierced the blanket of stillness that cloaked the parking lot.

Bella turned around, her eyes wild and markedly darker than earlier in the day. I gazed at her questioningly, but she said nothing. Neither of us moved for a long second, and I one of her arms was wrapped around me waist, holding me to her closely. Despite that, I was freezing, like I was lying on the frozen asphalt.

Before I could compose myself to say a word and ask what had just happened, Bella suddenly dropped her arm, and I fell the last few inches to the pavement. I blinked, and she leaped up and over the truck, vanishing from sight.

I felt my insides twist in bewilderment at what had just happened, nearly completely in shock. Yet, more than I was at a complete loss over the whole Bella-stopping-a van-20-time-her-weight-and-size thing, I was in wonderment at how close we had just been. I could still feel her arm wrapped around me.

I wasn't left long to think about the last earth-shattering two minutes of my life though. As suddenly as Tyler's van had come barreling toward me, and as quickly as total silence had descended when he had come to a stop, the screams began.

Every person in the parking lot descended, and crowded around me, speaking in loud, panicked voices. I heard someone scream for someone to call 911, and I tried to tell them not to. Even in the current state of things, I recognized that when 911 was called, Charlie would find out and automatically jump to the worst conclusion. Not that he was the panicky sort of guy- it was just that the whole thing was going to hit a little close to home.

Unfortunately, no one would listen, and I heard someone ask for an ambulance. By this point I was up on my feet, trying to get my act together and prove that I was fine while searching the crowd and parking lot for the only person I was interested in talking to.

I caught sight of her family, each of them looking oddly angry as they piled into the M3, but Bella was nowhere to be seen.

**A/N: Sorry I've had writer's block. But if you review, I'll definitely be more inspired to write again soon- I promise- it's a fact. Encouragement really does help, truly. **

**And I've had a couple of mentions about how the wording is sometimes really close to the original- I promise that the plot will start being more original now that we've reached this part. It's just that this is where I think the story would really change due to Bella's character.**

**Now REVIEW!!!**


	7. Chapter 6

**6. Trouble**

**A/N: See, reviews do make a difference. An update within three days and I'm making an attempt to switch it up a bit, due to public opinion. I'm not entirely happy with it, but I can't rewrite it any more.**

_Bella's POV_

_Stupid, stupid, stupid…_

That was exactly how complex my thoughts were as I ran away from what I was sure was the biggest mistake of my existence. What had I just done?

Actually, I was entirely aware of what I had done, and its consequences. I had realized that as I had sped across the parking lot, too quickly for any human eye to notice. Especially when every eye had been on the van as it had screeched its way across the lot, brakes locked.

However, being aware that I shouldn't do something wasn't the same as knowing that I had ignored my inner voice of reason. I was in shock that I had done something so…stupid. I had threatened to reveal my entire family. I had acted on impulse, not fully thinking through my actions and their consequences before I was already making my move.

Not that thinking would have changed anything- there was no way I could just let that van careen into Edward, squashing him. _And killing him, _a little voice whispered to me.

That voice, tinged with horror, was the one that had overpowered the one of reason and sanity. It was why I had reacted so rashly- I could not have let him die. I knew it was irrational- I had only spoken to him once. The sole other time I had seen him I had nearly killed him myself.

Yet I had leaped between Edward and Tyler Crowley's van in front of a parking lot full of humans, just to save him. The attachment I felt to him was incredibly ridiculous, and entirely unfounded. I had no reason to feel this need to protect him- it was just unnatural.

I was a vampire who wanted to kill him every time I got a whiff of his blood. I was a girl, and he was a guy. Neither of my two roles entailed being a protector, at least not of a human boy. In every way, Edward was turning my world upside down.

Stupid mysterious bronze-haired boy.

I had a feeling I would have jumped in front of the van even if I hadn't been an indestructible vampire.

But I was a vampire, and now I had given every person in that parking lot reason to be suspicious of me. I had pulled myself out into the spotlight, with one stupid move that I didn't fully understand my motivations for.

Certainly, attention was the last thing I needed. I had spent years learning how to keep my family's secret, learning to control my thirst and my grief over losing my life.

But that was the past, and right now I was in the middle of a crisis. Like I said, I did not need all eyes on me and the rest of the family. I had put too much effort into getting my act together to start screwing things up now. I had to find some way to set all of this straight. I needed to focus on what I was going to tell Carlisle, as the head of our family. We needed a plan of action.

I slowed to a human pace as I hit the edge of the parking lot outside the hospital and began heading toward the front doors without breaking stride. I knew that it would be at least a few minutes before Edward or Tyler would come in the ambulances that would surely be called for them, so I just jogged in the front entrance, then skipped the elevator to take the stairs to Carlisle's office.

Knowing that he wouldn't be expecting me and thus may not have sensed my smell or the distinctive sound of my footsteps yet, I knocked lightly on his door. It was sitting slightly ajar, and I heard the shuffle of some papers before he called for whoever was there to come in.

I stepped in, slipping the door shut behind me, as he looked up. He was surprised, and stood up.

"Bella! This is unexpected." He said, smiling for a moment, before becoming concerned. He knew none of us came by unannounced unless it was something important. And I'm sure worry was written all over my stony features- my feelings are always etched on my face like neon signs. "Is something wrong sweetheart?"

At his use of the familiar term, I felt myself warm a little inside- figuratively speaking. It reminded me that I was the youngest in our family, both in human and vampire years. As a result, Carlisle saw me as his baby daughter and tended to favor me in ways that he didn't the others, resulting in the occasional use of endearing terms that he rarely used for anyone else.

Yes, he loved Rosalie, but she had always been so incredibly independent and had so quickly found Emmet, that he had hardly ever felt like her parent. So he expressed his care for her by staying out of her way except to provide order and structure in her life. That, of course, was what Rosalie needed- to have an existence that was as simple and close to normal as was possible. He loved Alice too, but she had come already attached to Jasper, armed with visions, and adjusted to vampire ways. Though, he occasionally was there to fulfill the role of disciplinarian, keeping Alice in line, since she, out of all of us, was most like a child, except for Emmett, maybe…

Anyway, the point was that Carlisle was to every one of us exactly what we needed. In my case, I had been dependent on Carlisle's, and the rest of the family's, help for so long that it was different. I knew I was his favorite, and it gave me a little comfort in my existence to have such a loving father figure. Even more spectacular was having Esme, who was the ideal concerned and caring mother. Thinking about all of this also made it much easier to tell Carlisle about my mistake.

I knew that Carlisle was going to be worried about our family, but I knew that my idiocy was not going to exclude me from that unit in any way either. At least not in the eyes of Carlisle.

With that knowledge and assurance, I answered his question.

"Well, actually Carlisle- I did something stupid." I said, biting my lip and thinking back to the only descriptor I had come up with on my run from Forks High.

Ever patient, Carlisle only sat down in his luxurious but worn brown leather chair behind his mahogany desk, waiting for me to continue. I knew the move was purely out of habit- he would have been just as comfortable standing.

His action was just like the deep breath I sucked in- it was for the calming effect, but served no other purpose. I felt my lungs expand, then proceeded to make a pre-emptive disclaimer.

"What I did- its put the entire family at risk, and I want to apologize for that in advance." I said, my own personal anxieties causing me to avoid going straight to the point. Carlisle continued to look at me calmly, without an outward hint of worry, but I didn't miss the flick of his eyes to my own.

I knew what he was checking for, but I didn't feel offended. It was entirely reasonable for him to jump to that conclusion, especially when I wasn't just being straightforward about what had happened. I was always babbling on and on, especially when I was upset. That was probably when it would be best to just blurt it all out, but I never did take the easy way. Carlisle had learned that about me, and was only trying to give me the space to work it all out at my own pace, even if curiosity was obviously burning him up inside. It would only take me longer if he started asking me questions. Of course, he was also trying to avoid jumping to conclusions and making me feel like he didn't trust me.

That was just one more reason I admired Carlisle- he was always so gentle and never wanted to hurt anyone. In this case though, any conclusions he could have made would be reasonable. There were only a few things that could put our family in real danger. And all of them really boiled down to just one big no-no: exposure. If danger equaled exposure, then exposure almost always equaled a slip on one of our parts. It only made sense that Carlisle would check my irises for hints of red.

The other fact that justified his concern was the high probability that any slip-up would be mine. Sure, Jasper was also a good bet to make. He had been born and raised in the violent bloodshed of the southern newborn armies, and he was scarred inside and out from years of intimidation and reward in the place of love. However, as susceptible as Jasper was to pouncing on a human and ripping out their throat at any second, my own record wasn't much better.

After all, I was the youngest. Even without years of damage, I didn't have that many years of vegetarian experience under my belt. And, apparently, in my human life I had been an emotional kind of person. Couple my natural sensibility with grief over my lost life and the deadly duo of newborn bloodlust and lack of self control, and I was a problem waiting to happen. I had just been so unprepared for what had happened to me- not that any vampire I had come in contact with had been prepared to be turned.

The point is, even under the guidance of Carlisle and the others, in the past there had been quite a few issues resulting in multiple moves. Sometimes we would pick up and leave after just a few months, other times after a few years. While everyone else seemed to understand, since they had all moved on for each other at some point, Rosalie had not been happy with my seeming lack of discretion. It had kept us from becoming anything like sisters for the longest time. Only since I had managed to get a foothold in control had we grown closer. Thus, despite the fact that I hadn't tasted human blood in nearly fifty years, it wouldn't be a huge surprise if I had suddenly flown off the handle and it had resulted in me caving in to the permanent burning in my throat.

That was all without mentioning the whole issue of how dreadfully appealing Edward's blood was to me. Carlisle knew all about that too, so he probably thought I had killed him, cracking under all the pressure.

I sighed, thinking about how I had been the one who had chosen to put all the pressure on myself. I had chosen to return to Forks, after running away that first week to Alaska. That Edward's blood had made me want to go anywhere near the vicinity of Tanya, who I found overbearing, spoke volumes in itself. But I had come back- I hadn't been willing to let one boy drive me away from the only family I knew. I had been determined, and knew my limits. I also knew that I had overstepped my limits so many times before out of stubbornness that it was no wonder Carlisle was concerned. Of course, stubbornness had also eventually led me to gaining control- control that was now as strong as anyone's, except Carlisle's.

"I didn't do that Carlisle- none of us did, so you can stop freaking out." I knew Carlisle always freaked a little on the inside when one of us had a slip up- it tore him up. He loved life so much, and he always took our mistakes as his own personal failures. Silly, of course, but that was Carlisle.

"Well dear, if it's not that, what is it?" he asked, still the picture of serenity.

With his question to direct the word vomit that kept coming up due to my distraught state, I proceeded to explain what had happened in the parking lot, speaking at vampire speed.

When I was finished, he just looked at me for a moment. I felt a familiar push on my consciousness as his gazed rested on me. I always felt that when someone tried to analyze me to figure out what I was thinking. Almost everyone, even humans, gave me that sensation from time to time, not even realizing what they were doing.

I would have never noticed it if I didn't have my ability to shield my mind. I had discovered the shield when we had been staying with the Denali clan in Alaska in transition between homes. It was our first move, just a little over a year after I had been changed. I was actually the reason we were being uprooted- I had been making my first excursions into the public since all the red had left my eyes. A trip to the park at dusk had not ended well- supposedly, there weren't supposed to be that many people there, and I could test myself without getting to close to any humans. Unfortunately, a college-aged boy had been playing football with some friends in the park and had been the one sent to find the ball that had tumbled into the woods. Rosalie, who had been sent with me, hadn't been able to stop me, distracted with watching the few picture perfect families who hadn't left the park yet. He had stumbled into my path, and the suddenness of having the scent of human blood so close had resulted in my animal instincts taking over.

It was the first time I ever killed a human, and I was consumed with self-hatred. I hated hurting others, and I had taken a life. I had needed a distraction. Alice and Jasper hadn't joined us yet, so Kate, one of Tanya's sisters, was the first vampire I had ever met with a special ability. I had been curious to see what she could do, and no one else was volunteering to let her demonstrate on them. Eventually Tanya had suggested I let Kate try it on me- she said it mostly as a joke and to challenge me out of good humor, but I decided to follow through.

I always had been fearless- it was like I almost completely lacked the natural instinct for self-preservation.

With defiance, I had stepped up to Kate, steeling myself for the shock I had heard described before. Everyone had gathered around, eager to see my reaction- especially Emmett. He was ultimately disappointed- Kate's touch hadn't made me feel the tiniest spark.

After a bit of research on Carlisle's part, we figured out my ability. Over the years I had gained control over it, and now I had a distinct awareness of the cloak over my mind. Along with being able to stretch and project it, I had also discovered that I could sense the slightest attempts to get into my head, even the mundane sort. People don't realize what they are doing when they stare into your eyes to understand what you're thinking, or when they are analyzing your every word for the true meaning inside your head. Truly, it was fascinating to know when people didn't believe what you were telling them, or when they were concerned about the hidden meaning behind your words, or any other number of things.

Of course, I had never felt a human push as hard on my shield as Edward. I had noticed it that first day in the cafeteria, when I had still been able to focus because the potency of his blood hadn't gripped control over every one of my faculties yet. That in itself was shocking- usually humans weren't capable of looking that deeply inside from such a great distance. Then, today in Biology- I had never felt anyone push so hard before. Except Aro, and he had centuries of experience as a vampire with an extraordinary gift. The entire situation just added to the way Edward made me feel unsettled and flustered in ways that weren't supposed to be possible for vampires.

Carlisle's push against the shield wasn't intentional in the least- I knew him well enough to recognize that he was only concerned. The attempt at intrusion was of the ordinary sort, weak and incomparable to what Aro- and Edward apparently- could do. I was sure Carlisle wasn't even aware of his accidental search.

After a moment, the light pressure was relieved, and he spoke.

"Bella," he began, seriousness in every word. "This is certainly a problem, but before we go any further, I want you to stop beating yourself up over this." he said, pausing. I only nodded in answer, though I didn't stop internally criticizing myself.

"You saved his life- remember that. Your actions were good and I am proud of you. Even if we may be at risk. How much do you think the boy saw?"

"He knew that I was across the parking lot- he looked at me right after he saw the van. He may have seen me stop the van too…" I said, my voice fading out as I bit my lip. I had no idea what we were going to do about this.

Carlisle was silent, in consideration. "But you're not sure?" he asked after a moment.

I thought about that. I really had no idea how much he might remember or have seen. It had happened quickly, at least it would have for a human, and he had hit his head.

"No." I answered with certainty. Carlisle's one question gave me hope- maybe I hadn't messed everything up.

"Well, then- that is our first step. You have to find out what he knows."

I nodded. Except- there was one other thing that suddenly occurred to me. What if Edward was really hurt- I had kept the van from hitting him, but how much had I damaged him in the process?

"Carlisle- do you think you could check him out? I'm a little worried I may have hurt him."

"Certainly dear- we can go right now."

I nodded, anxious to see that he was ok. Carlisle rose from his chair and placed a soothing hand on my back, guiding me out of the office.

On the walk down the hall, it suddenly seemed like Edward was all that mattered- I wanted him to be ok. I wanted to talk to him. Though that was insane. I shouldn't want to be that close to the source of my temptation. But it seemed too late for that now- my entire life suddenly centered around Edward Masen, both for practical reasons and forces I didn't understand, but pulled me toward him.

It didn't seem like anything was going to keep me away from him anymore- something had changed today and for whatever reason, Edward was now important to me. I may have been confused about why I cared so much, but I did know I cared.

But I also cared about my family, and they were much more important at the moment. I took a deep breath, and readied myself to find out what kind of danger we were in.

**A/N: Ok kids, thanks so much for all of the reviews last time. I think I received something like 12, which was awesome. I especially enjoyed the couple of longer ones- all of them make my day though! Since this chapter is much more original, I would absolutely love it if I could hit 18-20 reviews for the chapter- I know you all can do it!**


	8. Chapter 7

7. Conversation

**A/N: Thanks so much for all the feedback- just 6 reviews this time, so I guess the last chapter wasn't as good as #5. Still, I love any reviews- one makes it all worth it, and I'd never hold back an update just to provoke you guys.**

_Edward's POV_

I couldn't believe I was actually sitting in the hospital. Still. After Bella had bolted and the entire student body had descended, it had been pure chaos. I hadn't been able to get a single person to listen to me. I had insisted repetitively that I was perfectly ok, but it had all been in vain. Someone had called 911, and everyone else wouldn't let me leave. Eventually a couple of teachers showed up and calmed the mess down, but they had been even more insistent that I get checked out. The whole scene with the ambulances and gurneys had been entirely unnecessary, at least in my case. Tyler, on the other hand, had actually been pretty messed up.

He was sitting on the bed next to me at the moment, covered in blood from the various lacerations he had acquired, mostly from the shattering of the windows in the van. They were still in the process of cleaning up the cuts, removing the glass fragments and sewing him up. I thanked heaven that, in addition to avoiding death today, blood didn't bother me. On the other hand, Tyler's constant apologies were a little annoying.

He insisted on apologizing every five minutes, and that insistence had initially dispersed any anger I felt over his reckless driving and stupidity. I had told him, several times, that it was alright, and that he didn't need to apologize. Yet, right now, he was launching into it again. I just mumbled 'I know' a couple of times until he was quiet and left me in peace. Really, I was completely whole and intact. I knew it could have ended badly, but I was fine, thus, no problem.

Now if only the doctors and nurses would get that through their heads. Being in the hospital, with its overbearing scent of antiseptic and sickness was forcing memories to the forefront of my mind. Along with claustrophobia, I was filled with the dull ache of pain while I sat impatiently in the emergency room, though it was not the sort the doctors and nurses seemed to believe I should be feeling. Of course, it wasn't like I could explain to them why I was fine. Telling them Bella Cullen, with her dainty and fragile appearance, had stopped a speeding van and had thus prevented all potential of bodily harm or injury was not the way to get out of the hospital. I was sure that if I whipped that one out they would probably lock me up in the psychiatric wing. Assuming a hospital in such a small town had one of those.

Not to mention, there was no way I was going to just reveal that information. From the way Bella had looked at me and then sped away so quickly, I knew that she didn't want anyone to know what had happened. Who would? If everyone knew what she could do- well, I'm sure that people were not supposed to know. For whatever reason, I had no desire to expose Bella. I felt like I had to keep my mouth shut to protect her.

Ironic, considering what had happened about a half hour before. Even though Bella seemed vulnerable, I was certain she could take care of herself. After all, if a van couldn't take her out, then what could? That didn't mean she should have to take on the world on her own though, just because she could.

I shook my head at my thoughts. What was I thinking? I hardly knew Bella, and all of the sudden I was infatuated with her. It was silly and the stuff bad romantic comedies and thirteen year old girls dreamed up.

I decided I should just chalk it up to being thankful for having her save my life. And desperately wanting to know how she had done it. That must be it- I was infatuated with the mystery.

The events of the morning had only added to the intense curiosity I felt to learn more about Bella. Every day, she became a deeper mystery. From a girl I couldn't place in any of the usual boxes, to a beautiful goddess who had stricken me with fear, to polite and sweet lab partner, to…my saving angel. I had no idea what to expect next, but I was determined to understand her. The drive to figure her out was like an addiction for me, and I wanted to talk to her, soon, and demand answers. Whenever I finally got out of this God-forsaken hospital…

Just as I was considering making a run for it, a pale-skinned man came in the door and approached my bed side. Instantly, I noticed his eyes, the same golden color that Bella's were. His skin was the same pale shade, though his features weren't all that similar to hers and his hair was nearly the color of his eyes. I knew instantly that he must be Dr. Cullen.

Yet, I was caught off guard by how he shared some traits with Bella, since I knew he was her adoptive father. At the same time, I wasn't that focused on him, as I noticed Bella tagging along behind him. Only Dr. Cullen's introduction tore my gaze away from where she sat on the end of Tyler's bed.

"Hi, Edward, my name is Dr. Cullen. How are you feeling?" he asked, his voice tinged with true compassion and care. If only every doctor had the same bedside manner- most of the ones I had seen this morning were horrid.

"I'm fine. Really- I've already told everyone that." I said, hoping that maybe he would actually listen.

"Hmm…I heard you hit your head pretty hard- how does this feel?" he asked, fingers running along my scalp.

"Its fine- nothing wrong at all." I said, fighting back a small wince as his fingers grazed where my head had made contact with the pavement.

He smiled, obviously noticing my discomfort.

"Well, you were certainly lucky today. Seems like everything will be fine- you may want to ice that though, in case you get a bump." I nodded, thankful that someone finally realized that I was not terribly and horrifically injured.

"Yeah- lucky." I said, in response to Dr. Cullen's comment, but staring at Bella. She only stared back, her face giving nothing away for once. I may not have wanted to give her away, but I wanted her to know that she wasn't off the hook.

"Yes, well, I'll see to getting you released immediately." He said, following my line of eyesight, taking note of where I was looking. "You may go wait in the lobby- I'm sure Chief Swan is anxious to see you." After observing the traded gaze I had with Bella, Dr. Cullen's friendly demeanor chilled noticeably. It made me wonder if he knew what had happened. As I considered it, along with how Bella had been with him when he came in, I realized that he must. The knowledge only multiplied my questions.

I nodded in assent to his instruction, and rose from the bed, never taking my gaze from Bella. I approached her, observing how she became more rigid the closer I got.

"I'd like to talk to you." I said, quietly.

"Go ahead." She responded, speaking for the first time since she had entered the room. With her words, a sudden innocence took over her features as she looked at me.

"Alone, please?" I asked. She blinked, but then rose, walking out of the room without looking back.

I followed, running through the thousands of questions in my head. I had no idea what I was going to say, now that I had the opportunity.

Bella stopped abruptly as we reached the turn of the hallway, the same look of complete innocence on her face as in the emergency room.

"What is it?" she asked, her voice entirely genuine without a bit of malice. There was no spitefulness in her question, just pure curiosity. I was a bit shocked. Though she was pulling off the ignorance bit well, I knew that she must know what I wanted to talk about.

"You know what. How did you stop the van?" My own question, unlike Bella's, was not without intensity. Perhaps my question was much more blunt than what I intended, but she had caught me off guard. And really, what else could I ask?

"I didn't." she said, sickly sweetness saturating her voice.

"You are a terrible liar Bella." I said, being a bit harsher than I wanted to be. I had never called anyone a liar to their face before, and especially not anyone like Bella. I couldn't help myself though- I needed answers. Anger flared across her facial features, breaking through her carefully laid façade for only a moment. It was then replaced by a pleading look.

"Edward- you can't tell anyone what happened- no one." she said, begging me with every word.

I was taken aback- of course I wasn't going to tell. Not with the way she suddenly seemed so helpless- she needed me. I could see that, even if she did have super-strength.

"I won't- I promise."

She surveyed me up and down, and I was consumed with the desire to know what she was thinking, especially when she shook her head and let out a sigh. Feeling like I was drowning in a sea of questions, I was suddenly pushed me over the edge, and I slipped.

"Can you please tell me what you're thinking?" I asked. I knew I should be embarrassed for just blurting out such an imposing question, with such fervor, but I couldn't help myself.

She looked at me, wide-eyed and questioning, before surprisingly, answering.

"Just that I can't believe that I trust you. There is no reason I should, but I trust you." She said. I would have smiled if her tone hadn't been so serious in its disbelief.

"Then can you tell me how you did it?" I asked, staring into her golden eyes.

She didn't even stop to consider it- there was hardly a pause between the end of my own words and the beginning of hers.

"No- I can't." her answer came, tumbling from her pale red lips quickly.

Now I was truly confused.

"You trust me, but you can't tell me?" I asked in exasperation.

"Right. But I need you to just tell everyone that I was standing beside you and pulled you out of the way. My family took me straight to my dad instead of waiting on the ambulance. You can't say anything else, ok?" How could I say no to her?

"Fine. Whatever you need." I said, coldness seeping back into my voice. I may not have been able to tell her no, but I was still frustrated that she wasn't explaining anything. I just couldn't understand her, no matter how hard I tried.

"You're not going to let this go are you?" she asked, apparently picking up on everything that was unsaid.

"Absolutely not." I responded.

She sighed again, looking down at the floor.

"You really should." She said, eyes glued to her nails as she fiddled with each of her fingers in turn.

"Why?" I asked, knowing that despite the softness of her voice, she wasn't going to give in, but still asking the question.

"I have to go. Just, stick to the story- promise?"

"I promise." I said, sincerity propelling my words.

She stared at me one last moment, then turned and walked back toward the emergency room.

I didn't move for one long moment, unwilling and unable to move as I processed the conversation I had just had with Bella. I shook my head, exasperated that the mysteries never ceased. On the other hand- she had left the door open through her final few responses. Or so it seemed. At least she hadn't made a flat out refusal to answer any more questions, or demanded that I stay away. She had only made me promise to stick to the story. That I could do, but it didn't mean I had to let it all go. Though she had said it would be best if I did. What was I supposed to make of that?

Just then, Charlie burst through the doors at the end of the hall, interrupting my circular and acrobatic analysis.

For the first time, I was truly distracted from Bella as I thought about Charlie, and groaned at what he must have been going through the past two hours. To hear that his only surviving family had been in a serious accident with a car, after the death of his brother and sister-in-law in a similar accident- I could only imagine what he was thinking.

"Edward." He said, closing the gap between us and placing a hand on my shoulder. "You ok?"

"I'm fine Charlie- Dr. Cullen just saw me and is getting me released now."

He relaxed a little- I knew the respect he had for Dr. Cullen, and knew that was the only thing that assured him of my health.

"Alright. Let's get you home then." He said, hand dropping from my shoulder and easily accepting my explanation. Apparently, a crisis didn't make Charlie any more talkative or expressive. In a way, I was thankful for that as I followed Charlie to the front desk, suddenly exhausted from the events of the day.

**A/N: I know its short, but its late. On another note, the next chapter will probably be in Bella's POV again. REVIEW- let me know what you think! Too much similarity to the book still, or better?**


	9. Chapter 8

**8. Decisions**

**A/N: Yay for a slightly longer chapter- in answer to a request a couple of chapters ago.**

_Bella's POV_

I paced the floor of my room nervously, waiting. In general, my usual response to stress was complete stillness, as it was for all vampires. This was not a usual instance. I was filled with too many emotions and worries to bring myself to be still. It was like all my inner turmoil threatened to burst out of me in one huge swirl if I didn't move and appease it. I was sure that I would be having a panic attack if my body was still capable of that- without a heartbeat or adrenaline that was impossible. Still, I paced to calm myself, as I had for the past couple of hours since I had arrived home from school. It took every ounce of control I had not to step too hard and splinter the honey toned hardwood floors.

After my unsettling conversation with Edward, I had went back to find Carlisle. There were two reasons for abruptly leaving Edward standing in the hallway. One, I really had nothing else to say at the moment. I didn't have any other information I could give him, so there was no need to continue the conversation. Yet, as I had stared into his emerald eyes, I had seen he was sincere in his promise to keep my secret. The trust I had felt had terrified me while simultaneously making me want to tell him everything, though I knew I couldn't for his own safety, as well as my family's. Despite this knowledge, if I had stayed any longer, my resolve may have weakened. In addition, my other resolve, to not give in to the scent of his blood, may have disappeared as well. It would have been so easy to kill him in that deserted hallway, and I knew I was nearing my breaking point as the burn that coated my throat had intensified. It was when fantasies of seducing him and slowly kissing down his neck before sinking my teeth into his pulse point had begun crossing my mind that I had realized I had to make the responsible decision.

So, for the safety of everyone involved, I had gotten the promise I needed, before leaving. As I walked away, I was thankful for the mostly fresh air of the hallway, even though it was saturated with the scent of multiple cleaning chemicals and antiseptics that left a foul taste in my mouth. At least they overpowered the faint smell of blood from the various patients in the hospital, along with tainting any appeal it would have. Even with all of these factors, I couldn't imagine how Carlisle did this every day.

After realizing that Carlisle wasn't in the emergency room, I backtracked to his office. He was there, waiting with Rose, Emmett, Jasper, and Alice. They had come to the hospital directly after the incident as well, anxious to know how we were going to handle the situation.

The moment I stepped through the door, I felt the familiar push on my shield, magnified by five. Just by looking at my siblings, I could see that they were all tense, with the exception of Alice, who was looking giddy. Besides her, every one of them was as still as a statue, and silent. Only Carlisle even bothered to preoccupy himself with anything, sitting at his desk with a medical textbook situated in front of him. Even he was pushing on my shield though, and I was sure they all wanted to know what the heck I had been thinking, how my conversation with Edward had went, and what the repercussions of my actions were going to be.

I bit my lip, looking down in shame and unable to meet any of their eyes, even Carlisle's gentle and concerned ones, with all of them glued on me when I entered the room. I had no idea what to say. Thankfully, Carlisle jumped in and took the lead before anyone else could.

He stood, and walked around to the front of his desk, facing us all where we stood, scattered around the relatively large office. I was closest to the door, as I had frozen just inside the entrance. The other four flanked me on each side in pairs. Emmet leaned against the wall, arms wrapped around Rosalie's waist, her back to his chest and delicate, perfectly-manicured hands resting on top of his. Jasper stood erect off to the other side, arms frozen by his side. Alice clung to his forearm on the side closest to me, her entire body turned towards him, though her head was turned to look at Carlisle.

"I realize you are all worried right now, and perhaps, a little upset or shocked. Obviously, we are all concerned about what the events of this morning will mean for our family." Carlisle began, addressing the entire group and jumping straight to the point, smoothing his white coat.

"Understatement of the century…" Rosalie muttered, though she knew we would all hear her. Out of everyone, she appeared to actually be angry and not just upset.

"Rose, please keep your comments to yourself for the time being." Carlisle warned before proceeding. She scowled, but quieted, and Emmett leaned down to kiss the crown of her golden-haired head.

"We will have to discuss this," Carlisle continued, looking directly at me. His look made me duck my head in shame all over again. I knew he wasn't disappointed in me in any way- he had said the exact opposite earlier. What bothered me was that his comment reminded me that I had done something that impacted the entire family and would necessitate a group decision on our course of action. Carlisle only left the most serious issues up for group debate- usually we would just handle our own affairs.

"However, right now, I think you should all return to school. We don't need to draw any more attention today."

His suggestion was obviously more than that- his words were laced with a heavy dose of authority that couldn't be denied. There were a few grumblings, but ultimately, everyone assented.

"Now, Bella, what is the story we are telling?"

I took a deep breath before summarizing what Edward had promised to tell everyone. "I don't think it is possible to deny that something didn't prevent Edward from being hit by the van. Since Edward knows it was me, I've convinced him to just say I was standing beside him and that I pushed him out of the way. I wasn't on the scene when the ambulances showed because Emmett, Alice, Rose and Jasper brought me directly to you."

Carlisle nodded, while everyone else, except Alice, just stared at me. If they hadn't been my family, I was sure I would have been cowering at the glares of three extremely strong and angry vampires.

"Why would he agree to lie?" Jasper asked, confused and disbelieving.

"I don't know." I responded quietly. "All I know is that he promised."

My answer only intensified the piercing looks from my family.

"Oh, well if he _promised_…" Rosalie scoffed.

Carlisle didn't even acknowledge her. "Are you sure Bella?"

"Yes- absolutely." It was the only thing I was sure of, but I didn't feel the need to put that out there and expose the fact that I had banked so much trust in one human.

"I think that story should work out fine, for now. We just need to get through the next few hours for now anyway. Do you see anything Alice?"

"No problems with the story." She answered, obviously skirting the question and tone filled with the excitement of a child. Really, she was practically in sing-song mode. Alice was never this happy except when she had a vision or was anticipating a shopping trip. Given the circumstances, I was going to take a shot in the dark and say she was holding back a vision. I was going to have to corner her later and get her to tell me what she saw.

"Good. Then go back to school, keep a watch on everything and listen for any possible suspicions. We'll meet today after I get home and determine what to do based on how the rest of today goes."

We all nodded, knowing that Carlisle's plan was the best option. We had to know how the town was reacting, and then respond accordingly. We couldn't afford any rumors, but at the same time, we couldn't risk jumping to conclusions and alerting any suspicions unnecessarily.

We all left the hospital and returned to school around lunch time, this time all in the M3. It took us no more than a couple of minutes to get back, going more than double the snail-pace speed limit. Edward was nowhere in sight, and I assumed he had decided to take the rest of the day off. A few questions were asked by some teachers and by Jessica, who I had noticed hanging around Edward a lot. It was pretty brave of her to approach our lunch table of vampires, since most humans normally felt an implicit aversion to us, even if they had no idea what we were. It was the natural predator-prey, intimidation dynamic at work.

I fed everyone the same story, and by the end of the day, it was the buzz of the school. Thank goodness that Jessica had a huge mouth- who would have guessed it would ever be anything other than an annoyance. It seemed that the false tale was being easily accepted, and Alice continued to foresee no problems. Though the added attention was uncomfortable for all of us, it was a bearable necessity.

Personally, I was amazed that no one seemed to remember that I was nowhere near Edward, but humans were always so quick to accept the simplest and easiest explanation for anything out of the ordinary. If I had to take a guess, it was a natural mechanism of protection. Knowledge may be power in most cases, but sometimes power isn't worth the nightmares that come with it. Most humans would simply prefer to think the supernatural didn't exist- lucky for us, I suppose. If only Edward's curiosity would be blinded by his birthright of survival instinct.

After a long day of planting the public explanation for Edward's spectacular and improbable survival, I was grateful when the final bell rang, and eager to get home. Though I was also worried, scared, and ashamed of putting my family at risk, I truly just wanted to get the whole democratic-judgment process over with. I knew I was going to be forced to elaborate on my actions and make a suggestion for our next step, and I couldn't help but wonder what my siblings were all thinking and how they were going to react.

When we all piled into Rose's M3 after school, I got a foretaste of what to expect. Steely silence flooded the inside of the convertible as each of us looked off in various directions. Not one word was said about the day, and I knew that each of them was contemplating our future options. Rose gripped the steering wheel tightly as she sped down the road even faster than usual. Part of me was shocked the hard molded plastic of the steering wheel didn't disintegrate beneath her hold. Not even the gentle touch of Emmett's hand on her shoulder, who was sitting in the passenger seat, could provoke any easing of her tension.

I sat behind him, staring out the window. Alice sat in the middle, next to Jasper. She was holding his hand, rubbing minute circles on his skin. He sat rigid, obviously distracted but still sending out the occasional calming wave into the car. He must have felt the panic that was building inside of me, as well as the fury that was obviously raging within Rose.

Eventually, we reached the house, and I was the first out of the car, even before it had come to a complete stop. I couldn't take the crackling tension in the air anymore. It didn't help that seeing my sisters with their mates was causing a longing to flare up within me that occasionally reared its ugly head. Shocking how something like that could bother me at a time like this.

I rushed directly to my room, closing the door behind me. At first I seated myself on the couch- just because I would be comfortable standing didn't mean I didn't occasionally like the mentally soothing feeling of the smooth leather against my skin. Seated there, I had closed my eyes at first, hoping to just block out the next couple of hours as I waited for Carlisle to return home and fix everything. Quickly, I realized that there was no way my mind was going to stop rushing through the events of the day, alternative responses and outcomes, and the multitude of self-fabricated potential futures. If only I had been Alice and could see what was going to happen.

Of course, I could have gone straight to her and asked. Alice would tell me- she had quickly become my best friend and sister from the moment she had shown up on our doorstep with Jasper. We shared everything- even clothes, to my personal dismay. I knew that with the right persuasion- perhaps even the self-sacrificing promise on my part of a shopping trip- she would have spilled. Only, now I was certain I had heard her leave with Jasper a few minutes after we arrived. Who knew where they had gone, or what they were doing, even if I did track them. Most likely she had just left because she knew I could tell she was hiding something and wanted to avoid me until our council tonight or was just trying to calm down Japser, but I wasn't willing to take the risk. There were certain things I just really did not need to see- in my state, the shock would probably push me over the emotional cliff.

Therefore, I was left in the dark when it came to the future, and floundered through the possibilities, from the bad to doomsday.

To distract myself, I had picked up the book I had been reading that morning. It was Pride and Prejudice- out of the hundreds of books I owned, this was one of my favorites. I had read the story so many times I had been forced to buy nearly a dozen copies over the years because it kept falling apart. I had just reached the point where Elizabeth traveled to visit her friend Charlotte after her marriage, and picked up where I had left off. However, even the drama of the unfolding romance between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy couldn't keep me preoccupied.

I had thrown down the book and jumped off the couch, and had been pacing ever since, giving into fantasies over how much danger we were in, the ridiculous images of the townspeople with pitchforks and torches only interrupted periodically by memories of Edward's emerald green eyes, highlighted with sincerity as he promised to keep my secret.

It was out of this reverie that the sound of the door opening and closing downstairs brought me. I immediately rushed out of my room, down the stairs, and into the living room at vampire speed. Even so, I was the last to arrive. Apparently, the others had all been waiting there for a while. I must have missed the return of Alice and Jasper altogether.

"To the dining room?" Carlisle suggested, not even bothering to go through the usual pleasantries.

We followed his example, and all filed into the room, adjacent to the great room. We each took our seats in the cherry-wood chairs at the dark-stained dining table that was never used except in instances such as these.

Carlisle went to the head of the table, while Esme sat on his left and I at his right. Rosalie sat next to Esme, Emmet by her side. Alice flitted into the chair beside me, and Jasper next to her.

"You all know why I've called this meeting. We are all aware of what happened today, and the potential dangers it could pose to our position and lifestyle here." Carlisle began. Apparently, Esme had already been filled in. "However, we must decide how to proceed. Bella, what do you suggest?"

I looked at my hands in my lap for a long moment, considering this. Carlisle's question caught me off guard. What did I think we should do? I hadn't been lying when I told Edward I trusted him, but I also understood the potential for exposure. The sudden and unnecessary danger I was the cause of. I was the one putting my family in the path of possible problems- again. How many times must we go through this- why was I the constant reason for upheaval in our lives?

"Obviously, this is my fault." I said, not really sure yet of what I was going to say and buying a few moments of time.

"Damn right." Rosalie replied suddenly, taking advantage of my pause. I looked at her, greeted by an icy stare, all remnants of the camaraderie we had built over the past few decades disappearing in that one look.

"Rose!" Esme chided, as much for her foul language as for the animosity in her rebuttal.

"What?" Rosalie answered, "We all know that this is just Bella as usual, risking our exposure on an emotional whim."

I winced at her statement, mostly due to the near identical nature of her spoken phrasing to the internal thoughts I had been kicking around all day. As much as Rosalies's words stung, I couldn't bring myself to refute her. Partly because she was just so intimidating, but also because I couldn't fault her for her words, I didn't make any attempt to disagree with her. It was true- over and over again, my lack of emotional control had endangered this family, and though my issues were rearing their head in a different way this time around, I had been motivated by my emotions.

"Rosalie, I think we should let Bella explain herself before you start attacking her." Carlisle said.

"Fine- but there isn't any way to explain this one. Its not even like she caved to what's natural for us…"

"Rose!" Carlisle cut her off. She stopped mid-sentence, crossing her arms over her chest and sat back, closing her mouth. Not that it meant her ears were open to listen to anything I had to say.

"Go ahead Bella." Esme said gently, kindness radiating from her.

I took a deep breath, launching into my story though I actually agreed with Rosalie that it was nearly impossible to give a rational explanation for my choices.

"I don't know what made me stop the crash from happening. I knew that everyone was watching, and I thought about the risks. But…I couldn't let that van hit him!" I said, trying to make each of them understand that it was the only sensible option in the moment. As I met each set of eyes around the table, I saw a variety of reactions. Jasper and Rose continued to stare back at me coldly, while Emmet just looked at me sheepishly before focusing back on Rose, Alice smiled at me, and Carlisle and Esme nodded in agreement.

"I think we _all_ believe that saving the human's life was the right thing to do Bella." Carlisle said, echoing his sentiments from earlier in the day. Rosalie began to disagree with him, but a glance from Esme stopped her in her tracks, and Emmet placed his hand on her shoulder, as much for restraint as to sooth.

"That's right." Esme agreed. "But- we do have to worry about the boy. We don't want others to become involved in this situation."

We all knew who she meant- the Volturi, the royalty and police of the vampire world, would become involved if they knew about any of this. Not that there was any reason they would become aware of the circumstances- unless Edward began to talk. In that case, we would all be finished.

"We have to take care of him." Jasper said quietly, but forcefully.

Knowing his military background, I instantly knew what dealing with this problem meant in his head.

"Absolutely not!" I practically shrieked, jumping from my chair before I could even think. Only Alice's hand on my wrist and Carlisle's firm pressure on my shoulder kept me from jumping on Jasper right there.

Their touch quickly brought me back to myself, and embarrassment flooded through me. If I could have blushed, I would have been beet red. Rosalie raised her eyebrows at my reaction, but didn't say a word. Emmet couldn't help but smirk a little- he always thought it was so funny when I got angry- while Esme just looked on with concern.

Why was I reacting so violently? I sat down, mulling that over. After a few seconds, I realized they were all waiting for me to speak and explain myself.

"Its just…I saved him today. You can't just end his life after that, Jasper." As the words left my mouth, I knew they were only partially true. It would be a waste if we were to resort to silencing Edward in the age-old mafia-style. However, something else, something deeper was linking me to him, and I couldn't imagine him dead, or even injured. The same irrational attachment from earlier in the day was tugging at me again, clouding my judgment.

"She's right Jasper- we can't just hurt an innocent. It would have been one thing to stand by and let him die at the hands of human carelessness, or even if…an accident…were to occur." He said looking at me, clearly thinking about how I had confided in him how intense the pull of Edward's blood was for me. "However, now, we are not talking about killing the boy but taking the necessary precautions to safeguard his life and our own lifestyle."

As Carlisle placed these two goals in one sentence, an idea suddenly occurred to me.

"What if I left?" I asked, thinking of how it was my presence that was constantly stirring up issues for my family and was also a threat to Edward's life, now in many ways.

A shocked silence settled around the table, and not a word was spoken for a moment.

"Bella, I don't believe that is necessary." Esme chimed in, breaking the silence first.

"I don't want to leave Forks- we are almost out of high school!"

"I didn't mean the entire family Rosalie. I'm the cause of all of this. If I leave- just me, problem solved."

"That's just not true Bella." Carlisle corrected. "If you leave, it will just heighten suspicions further. As would the departure of our entire family. And I don't think you are looking at this clearly either- you aren't a problem- you are a part of this family and we are here to support you. Families take care of each other, and that is what we are going to do."

"Carlisle's right." Jasper, surprisingly, agreed. "Don't be so shocked Bella. I could feel your emotions before you came up with that- though I may think you made a grave mistake today, you shouldn't be so self-deprecating. And I don't want you to leave."

Stupid empath. Before I could even be embarrassed or refute his interpretation of my feelings, Alice's tinkling voice jumped into the conversation for the first time.

"I don't think you could leave anyway Bella." She proclaimed, much surer of herself than her choice of words revealed.

"Of course I could. And I will, if its necessary." I said, exasperated that no one would listen to me, even the ones who should be gladly jumping on the wagon, like Jasper.

"No you couldn't. And Carlisle's right- it would just raise suspicions."

I started to object again, but Alice's "I can see the future, don't argue with me" face was on. I sighed, before asking the obvious question that she was dying to answer. I didn't really need to know what she was about to say to realize she was one-hundred percent correct.

I didn't actually want to leave Forks. I didn't want to leave my family, but there was also no way I was going to drag them along with me again. And, as much as I couldn't comprehend it and didn't want to admit it, I couldn't imagine not seeing Edward again- honest, sincere, gentlemanly Edward.

"What do you see, Alice?" I asked, giving into my curiosity but trying to sound disinterested so as to not encourage her.

"Actually, your future is changing a lot right now. I can see hundreds of pictures, but they are all blurry, and the images keep changing and morphing. The future only does this when something big is changing- like when I saw Jasper and you all. It's like a crossroads. But one thing is the same no matter what- every scenario is in Forks."

I couldn't help but want to giggle a little at the way Alice sounded like a bad fortune-teller. I would have, if the situation wasn't so serious. And the fact that I could tell she was holding back.

"Fine." I ceded, still dying to know what else Alice could see. Before I could ask, Jasper jumped back into the conversation.

"Ok- so that's one issue taken care of. Bella stays. What do we do about the boy?"

"I say we take care of him." Rosalie answered, coldly.

I growled softly, before Carlisle intervened.

"That is not an option Rose, and that _is_ final."

"You know I am perfectly capable of being discreet Carlisle. And, like you said. Families take care of each other- I don't really want Bella to have to leave either."

"That is not the issue Rosalie. I will not have a death on my conscience, and certainly not on yours, or your soul."

"I've already said I could do it." Jasper said. "We already know that I've got more than my share of blood on my hands. What's one more?"

This was really getting out of hand. I growled louder, waiting for Carlisle to settle this argument once and for all, or to stop Rosalie and Jasper on my own, if necessary. I cringed inwardly at the thought of fighting my loved ones- or any violence really- but I couldn't see Edward's death happen either.

"Jasper, I would rather you not do that." Alice suddenly said, giving him a meaningful look and seeming slightly reluctant and annoyed that she had to speak up. He only stared back, waiting for her reasoning. I watched his expression and resolve soften as he obviously read Alice's emotions.

"I don't know what you're seeing, but if it's making you feel all that, then fine. We can leave the boy. Though I don't know what about him is so special." He grudgingly ceded.

"What? What are you seeing Alice?"

"It's nothing." Alice said innocently.

"Obviously not." Emmett scoffed, apparently reasonably assured that Rosalie was in enough control of herself that he could spare a moment from watching her.

"If it's that important Alice, I think you should tell us all." Carlisle directed.

"Its just not that solid yet, ok. I wanted to wait before I said anything- I see…I see Edward with us, in the future."

"With us?" Esme asked, pushing for more details as we all remained clueless and confused at what Alice meant.

"I see him as a second best friend…" she paused, looking apologetically at me. "As part of our family." She said quietly.

"Part of our family?" Rosalie questioned, trying to see if Alice meant what we were all thinking.

Alice only nodded.

My head swam at her words. If he was going to join our family…there was only one way that could happen, and the implications of that jolted me to my core.

Everyone recognized the same realities I did, and shock painted each of our faces.

Esme was the first to break out of her own thought processes first.

"Well, that does change things." Esme said, barely holding back a grin and her voice coming out softly and wistful.

"Figures… a human." Rose laughed.

Emmett just looked bewildered, and what I imagined big brothers looked like the first time their little sisters begin being interested in boys.

Jasper was sending calming waves at me, in order to keep me from having a complete break down, and Carlisle was trying to get everyone's attention as Alice just sat calmly by.

"That can't be right." I said. It just couldn't be- a human? Edward? There was no way- I was a threat to his life, a constant source of danger. But at the same time, I could see it. I may have been in denial up until now, but I knew that my feeling for him were entirely too strong. I was as attached to him as I was to my family, and had never felt bonded to a human this way before. I knew there was something special about Edward- this just proved everything I had been trying to suppress.

"I see it Bella. You know I wouldn't lie to you- as my sister, and best friend. Every second, the vision gets clearer. I can't see when it all happens, or even if you'll be able to do it. But even just now, something changed that made the resolution jump up by leaps and bounds. You know it too. Its unavoidable, whatever the outcome."

At her explanation, I just sat in silence, processing how my world was being turned further upside down. She was right- I couldn't deny this. I could try of course- I could imagine just running away again, or trying to ignore Edward and putting distance between us, but my heart ached at either option. I was already too far gone.

"Well then," Carlisle said, calling us all back to the fact that we were supposed to be making some kind of decision here and not creating our own personal vampire version of a soap opera. "I guess that settles it. We stay here, make sure the boy doesn't say anything to anyone and stay on high alert. We'll adjust plans as necessary, but for now, we wait. I propose we leave how Edward is handled to Bella."

Every head at the table nodded, though Rose's response was grudging. Jasper was now much more resigned, his complete trust in Alice being showcased.

"Alright- you are all dismissed." Carlisle rose, patting my hand before leaving the room. He knew I wouldn't want to talk right now. Rose left in a huff, Emmett giving me an apologetic glance before following her.

"It will all be fine, I promise. Unless you kill him, of course." Alice assured before she led Jasper out of the room by his hand. He shot me a last bit of peace before exiting. I shook my head at Alice's version of comforting words.

Esme was the last to leave the dining room, and she leaned down to give me a hug, kiss my cheek, and smooth my hair before leaving me on my own to contemplate the changes that were apparently coming to my life.

As much as I wanted to fight what was apparently my fate, I knew better than to bet against Alice. If she said there were only two alternatives, there were only two alternatives. I laid my head down on my arms, running through the thousands of decisions I had to make.

**A/N: What's the verdict? Can't wait to see what Bella does myself. And I must say, I'm actually pretty proud of this chapter- hope you all agree. Special shout out to lilyflower1345 for leaving multiple reviews that are detailed- especially the last one- so encouraging and they make me smile! **


	10. Chapter 9

**9. Futures**

**A/N: I'm becoming sort of addicted to Bella's POV- so, here it is- though I'm not sure if this was the best idea... its kind of filler…**

_Bella's POV_

I have no idea how long I sat at the dining room table, eyes closed, completely frozen, head resting unnecessarily on my arms.

I was in the vampire version of shock, unable to move if I wanted to. My body had locked down, trying to allow my brain the space it needed to think. It wasn't being successful.

Though a thousand thoughts were rushing through my head, all were fleeting and enough concentration to process even one solitary thought eluded me. The flashes of various images of Edward, scrolling through my mind's eye as if they were part of a slide show weren't assisting in my attempts to focus either.

First, there would be Edward with shining green eyes, so bright and deep that I couldn't believe that God hadn't replaced his pupils with actual emeralds. The picture was burned into my memory from the parking lot, Edward's eyes on fire as they burned into mine. Shock at my imitation of a wall had manifested through his expression, but I'm sure surprise had been written all over my face as well. I couldn't believe I had just made myself so vulnerable, and I was in disbelief that I didn't kill him myself in the moment of close proximity. Yet, the main source of my surprise was how incredibly gorgeous Edward was, the green glint of his eyes in contrast to his messy bronze hair.

However, just as I was thinking nothing could be more beautiful, the image would twist and contort until another took its place. This one would also be of Edward, though it was vastly different. His perfect features were replaced by a sharper cruelty, the skeletal structure of his face, especially his jaw line, more prominent. The red tint of life vanished from the skin in his cheek along with any semblance of tan. The ghostly whiteness of his complexion only seemed paler in contrast to the frightening bright red that replaced the green of his irises. The vision was truly appalling, making every bit of me revolt in aching sadness.

That picture was all it took for my vivid imagination, honed by decades of prolific reading, to take off. I began to see Edward as one of us. I visualized pictures of him writhing in pain as the change burned away his humanity, others of him hunting, turned into a heartless predator. I thought about the curse of the burning thirst he would be tormented with, the bloodlust. I imagined his entire life ripped away from him, forcing him to constantly lie, keep his distance from humanity, and live in transience. The thoughts broke my heart- I couldn't imagine Edward's quiet nature forced into the reality of a vampire, harsh and deadly. I couldn't imagine the suffering he would endure.

On the other hand, I could envision him taking on the façade we all upheld, roughhousing with Emmett and Jasper, teasing Rosalie and Alice…being close by for the rest of my eternity. Gaining a family that included parents and siblings- things he didn't have now.

I wondered if the second part of my personal version of the future meant I was being selfish. Was I pacifying my own grief over what I knew couldn't be stopped by thinking up these positives?

The two facets of what was apparently fated to be Edward's future clashed with full force inside me as I struggled with this question. On one hand, the thought of Edward being resigned to the life we all lived and enduring the pain it would take to get him there was absolutely soul-shattering. On the other, I realized I generally didn't think my existence was so awful- not in the way Rosalie sometimes felt it was. Was it so detestable to be a vampire, especially in the way Carlisle had taught us all to manage it?

If one could be with the ones they loved forever and only had to pay for it by battling against a burning discomfort that was nothing more than a nuisance, then what was wrong with that?

Not that I claimed to love Edward. I may be a romantic at heart, but I was also a realist. While the connection I felt to Edward was strong, I hardly knew him, and there was no way I could claim love. Maybe the unyielding pull I felt was a sign of something more- I had heard the story of how Rosalie had been drawn to Emmett and subsequently risked changing him- but there was no way for me to know that yet, and Edward wasn't dying from a bear attack.

I growled softly in frustration, placing every ounce of energy I held into focusing, trying to stop the hundreds of tangents my mind kept running off on.

I had no idea what I was going to do. I ran through my list of options yet again. I could run- I wanted to do that more than anything. I was afraid, and ever since Edward came into my life, I had felt vulnerable for the first time in my vampire existence. A huge part of me, running off of instinct, told me that it was best to get far, far away. Yet, beyond my base instinct, I knew that wasn't the answer, and the entire family was in opposition to that decision anyway. That option was stricken from my list of potential actions.

The other option was to just avoid Edward like the plague. He seemed to be the complicating factor in my life, so maybe if I removed him as much as was possible, things would get back to normal. The complication of my feelings posed a serious roadblock to executing that plan. What I felt for him was entirely too intense to be ignored. Edward had become the center of my life in that parking lot, and the gravitational pull I felt to him had not vanished in the subsequent hours. Like Alice had said, there was no way I could actually stay away from him, no matter how melodramatic that sounded or how much I hated that a boy could have this influence on me. It wasn't like I could imagine Edward putting up with that either- I had seen the determination in his eyes to know the truth.

These conclusions left me with the only two options that had any probability of actually occurring anyway, if I was trusting Alice. And I always trusted Alice. I was either going to end up killing Edward, or he was going to become one of us. How either of those two futures would become the final outcome, I had no idea. Alice hadn't given a multitude of details over our little family council.

I continued to seethe in frustration at my lack of knowledge, wondering what else Alice was hiding from me. How was I supposed to make an informed decision when I had no information?

The thought pushed me over the edge and a new resolve overtook me. For the first time in hours, I moved, lifting my head from my arms. I pushed back my chair, taking notice that night had fallen- from looking through the window at the position of the moon, I assumed it was a wee hour of the morning.

I walked out of the dining room, through the great room, and up the stair case, my steps determined. I listened intently at the door to Alice's and Jasper's room, wanting to ensure that Alice had seen a vision of me coming up here and that I wouldn't be interrupting something I had no desire of seeing. Deciding it was safe, I knocked quietly at the door.

Alice called for me to come in, and I cracked the door open before feeling it was safe enough to push it in further. Alice sat with Jasper on the bed, both, thankfully, fully clothed, with Alice wrapped in his arms and head underneath his chin as they watched some movie on cable. The scene was sweet, and I almost felt bad for barging in- if I hadn't been so driven for advice, I might have turned around.

"Alice, I need to talk to you please."

"Of course Bella. I was wondering how much longer you would sulk before coming up here. You mind Jasper?" she reacted, all in one breath before kissing his cheek. He nodded, and returned her kiss on the crown of her dark-haired head before rising from the bed. As he walked past me and out the door, his hand rested briefly on my shoulder, giving me a small but effective jolt of reassurance. I'm sure he felt my gratitude.

After I heard his footsteps retreat down the stairs, I plopped down on the bed in front of Alice, mirroring her cross-legged seated position. She looked at me expectantly, courteously waiting for me to speak, though she had most likely seen our discussion in a vision already.

"Alice, I need to know the details of your vision- all of it, don't spare me anything." I said, speaking quickly and as quietly as possible, hoping that none of my family was listening too closely.

"There really isn't much more than what I told you Bella."

"I don't care- I want to hear it all again."

She sighed, but obliged my request. "Alright. I see you biting him- in most of the flashes, its willingly, and in most of those, Edward lives."

"Most of them? How many scenarios do you see?"

"I told you- right now there are dozens. None of it is set in stone, and it keeps changing, though some of the pictures are clearer than others. All of your decisions are shooting back and forth like tennis balls, and none of the visions stay still for very long because of your indecision."

I took in a deep breath- this was all so overwhelming.

"Ok- so in most of them, I choose to change him, and in most of those he makes it?" I cringed at the thought of what "making it" meant in this context, but every time I acknowledged the fact that this was going to happen in some way, it became easier. "What about in the others?"

Alice looked away before answering, and still wouldn't look in my eyes as she began her explanation, fiddling with the hem of her dress instead.

"In the others- the bloodlust, it becomes too much, and you take him. Sometimes you're stopped, sometimes you aren't."

I nodded, but I knew the fear that raced across my face. So, it was possible I would lose my control, and innocent, perfect Edward would die because of it. Alice must have seen how upset I was, learning from years of experience as my sister and best friend.

"But those are all really fuzzy Bella, and there are only a few of them. Really- I promise, in most of them he survives and becomes one of us."

"How is that supposed to make me feel better Alice? Why would I change him? And what about how he's going to react? We're acting like this is our decision! He's perfectly healthy, and his life as a human is fine! Why is this a good thing?" I all but screamed my response to her attempts to comfort me, and I knew tears would be pouring down my face if that was still possible. Instead, I was forced to settle for dry sobs.

Alice took me into her arms, holding my head to her shoulder, allowing me to be wracked with sadness before replying.

"You're forgetting the other part of what I told everyone earlier. I see him after the change Bella. I see him happy- when I say one of us, I mean he becomes part of our family. And, I see him with you."

I calmed a little at her words, and considered all of it. The idea of being with Edward would have made my heart skip a beat, if I still had a pulse. And if Alice said he would be ok with it all…

"How certain is that part of the vision?"

"Well, the possibility of you killing him is still there, so it weakens the vision. But considering that, I would say that if he is changed, this part is almost one hundred percent guaranteed."

I sat up, and looked straight into Alice's eyes.

"Are you telling me I should just change him now?"

She laughed, almost hysterically.

"What?" I asked, reverting to being frustrated again.

"Of course not silly! You hardly know him."

I rolled my eyes, and stared at my sprite of a sister in shock.

"Then what am I supposed to do?!"

"Get to know him Bella. You wouldn't marry a guy after talking to him once would you? Then why would you want eternity with Edward when you hardly know him?"

"Says the girl who knew from a vision who her soul mate was…" I grumbled.

"Bella- just relax. He's still a human, and just sixteen. It's different. It'll make it easier on him if he knows how he feels before the change- though I can see it going either way…hmm…" she trailed off, getting lost in Alice-land.

I huffed, becoming more irritated by the second that I couldn't see exactly what Alice saw.

"What about endangering his life- isn't it more likely that I kill him on accident if I spend time around him while he's a human?"

"That's true, but changing him now, while you're unaccustomed to the scent of his blood- it's just as dangerous." She replied, serious again.

I wanted to scream- there were just so many freaking decisions to make, and each of them seemed to have a dozen different potential outcomes, none of which I could see first hand.

"What about what he saw? Do I give him an explanation? What if he talks?"

"I don't see that happening. Didn't you say you trust him?"

I bit my lip- darn it- I did trust him. My objection was trivial- but my question about whether or not to tell him was not. I had no idea how I was going to approach that angle of my dilemma.

"I can't give you any future-seeing advice on that one. You're so undecided on what to do that I can't see anything."

"As my sister then- what should I do?"

"Hmm..I think you'll have to decide that one on your own. But- it is who you are. I think if you're planning on spending the rest of eternity with him, you should tell him sometime- when is up to you." she advised, gently, and voice serenely quiet and even.

I sighed, hanging my head under the weight of all the choices I had to make, but knowing that every bit of advice that Alice had given me made sense. Darn her ever-knowing self.

"Bella- you can do this. And it's all going to work out, I'm over 90% sure."

"Thanks Alice." I said, part genuine, part sarcastic as I rose from the bed. It was nearing time for us to leave for the school, and I needed to get my action plan in order based on my new intelligence. I left the room, shaking my head at the 90% assurance Alice had given me.

**A/N: so, there you have it. Alice/Bella sisterly fluff. Sorry if its repetitive- review, review!**


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